Switzerland-based Novartis is building its first chemical raw material development and production base on the Chinese mainland.

The foundation of the project was laid in Suzhou City, east China's Jiangsu Province, on Thursday, according to a company official.

The official said the project will cost 83 million U.S. dollars.

The base, due to start operation at the end of 2007, will be an important part of the Novartis' global supply chain, providing chemical raw materials for medicines for the global market, the official added.

The project will include a new development center for chemical medicines and two workshops designed to produce intermediates for innovative pharmaceuticals to be used to treat leukaemia, epilepsy and hypertension.

A Fortune 500 company, Novartis garnered 32.2 billion U.S.dollars in sales income last year, including 1.97 billion Renminbi yuan (some 240 million U.S. dollars) in China. It has launched five enterprises in the country, with a combined investment of more than 100 million U.S. dollars.

Source: Xinhua