Greece inaugurated its first ever production facility for medical cannabis − the largest such facility in Europe − and the latest in a string investments that are boosting the country’s position as a leading exporter of pharmaceutical products to the world.

The €40 million project by Israel-based Tikun Olam, located near Corinth, will be built on a land parcel of six hectares. The facility includes 21,000 square meters of state-of-the-art hybrid greenhouses, a vertically integrated production plant and a fully equipped R&D department.

In remarks at the inauguration, Minister of Development and Investments Adonis Georgiadis noted that the facility “will be able to export throughout Europe because this factory can carry out huge exports to all major European countries.”

Pharmaceutical manufacturing is one of Greece’s main industrial sectors, comprising dozens of local and foreign companies and accounting for roughly 10% of employment. The country exports around €3 billion worth of medicines a year to some 140 countries, making it Greece’s second-largest export sector. Much of the global supply of antibiotics, and medicines for treating cholesterol and diabetes, are produced in Greece.

Several international drug companies – like Germany’s Boehringer Ingelheim – have invested heavily in their Greek production facilities with an eye to exporting more. Overall, approximately €1.2 billion is now being invested in a dozen new production units and 18 new research centers that are expected to further boost production and exports.

The development of a plant focusing on medical cannabis represents a major investment in what is expected to be a growing market worldwide. Two other such production facilities, by investors from Europe and North America, are also planned at different locations in Greece.