TRENTON, N.J., Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) announced today that Tris Pharma, Inc. will expand its pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity with the help of $4.9 million in tax-exempt bonds issued under the state’s Edison Innovation Fund. Representatives from the EDA joined company officials today to tour Tris Pharma’s Monmouth Junction-based facility as part of Life Sciences Week, which was proclaimed by Governor Jon S. Corzine to recognize the contributions of the industry to the state’s economy.
The EDA has supported Tris Pharma, a pharmaceutical company engaged in the research and development of drug delivery technologies, since March 2002, and has helped the company grow from a staff of eight to more than 70 over the past five years. The company anticipates that the resulting manufacturing expansion will result in the creation of an additional 50 or more new jobs.
“Tris Pharma epitomizes the kind of company that the Edison Innovation Fund was designed to support and is truly a success story for the state,” said EDA Chief Executive Officer Caren S. Franzini.
EDA Director of Technology and Life Sciences Kathleen Coviello added, “It is entirely fitting to celebrate New Jersey’s first Life Sciences Week with Tris Pharma at its headquarters in Monmouth Junction -- a state-of-the-art facility that will help ensure the company’s continued success.”
“The availability of low-cost capital in the form of tax-exempt bonds is a great opportunity for companies like us and helps add manufacturing capacity right here at home in New Jersey,” said Ketan Mehta, Chief Executive Officer of Tris Pharma. “This is the second time we have been a beneficiary of EDA’s bond program. Our continued investment in first-rate technology infrastructure is greatly facilitated by this bond-financing,” Mehta said. The bonds, directly purchased by The Provident Bank were issued for 10 years with a fixed, low-interest rate and interest-only payments due for the first three months. The EDA also provided a $1-million guarantee.
Franzini said the EDA has assisted technology and life sciences companies for over a decade, and the Edison Innovation Fund works to further encourage the location and growth of these companies in New Jersey. The fund was created to assist technology and life sciences companies throughout their discovery, development and commercialization stages and is managed by the EDA in consultation with the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education and the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology. The fund will leverage $350 million in private capital that will be targeted to emerging companies as well as existing mid-sized and large technology and life sciences businesses.
Tris Pharma, established in 2000, is a privately owned, product-driven specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the research and development of innovative drug delivery technologies. The company’s proprietary technologies enhance solubility and bioavailability, provide controlled release formulations for solid and liquid dosages, and offer orally disintegrating tablets for immediate and controlled release. For more information on the company, visit www.trispharma.com.
The EDA is an independent, self-sustaining state financing and development agency that works to promote economic growth, job creation and the revitalization of New Jersey’s communities with financing assistance, technical support and entrepreneurial training, and real estate development activities.
For information on the Edison Innovation Fund and to learn more about opportunities for business growth throughout New Jersey, visit the state’s business portal at www.NewJerseyBusiness.gov.
Photos available upon request.
CONTACT: Tim Saxon of Tris Pharma, +1-732-940-2800, ext. 104
Web site: http://www.trispharma.com/
http://www.NewJerseyBusiness.gov/
