The Athens LifeTech Park at Spata combines the functions of biotech incubator, research and development support and convention center.
Not far from Athens’ airport, a biotechnology hub has sprung up this year. The Athens LifeTech Park (ALTP) has been formed to support the full cycle of scientific innovation, from conception to laboratory, to clinical trials on patients, and the development of new treatments.
ALTP is a €70 million investment by pharmaceuticals company ELPEN and is an entity with its own board of directors and international scientific leadership.
ELPEN founder Dimitris Pentafragkas always believed the local pharmaceuticals industry ought to invest in knowledge and not just in production, says his granddaughter Eleni Pentafragka, ALTP’s executive vice chair and ELPEN’s Chief Strategy Officer. “He acted on this with ELPEN’s Research and Experimental Center, something ahead of its time: collaborative research between a Greek pharma company and local scientists.”
ALTP is at a whole different level than older efforts. Occupying some 15,000 square meters, it combines the functions of biotech incubator, research and development support activity, and conference and training center.
