Macrogen said that it has completed the expansion and relocation of its branch office in Spain, aiming to strengthen its competitiveness in the European market.

It is part of Macrogen’s strategy to build a global network of genome centers. The company opened a new genome center in Maastricht, the Netherlands, in August.

"The new Spanish branch is in the center of Madrid and has high access to medical facilities such as major university hospitals, general hospitals, and examination centers," a company official said to Korea Biomedical Review on Thursday. "The company plans to promote the expansion of clinical diagnosis and treatment service business through the relocated branch."

The previous branch was on the outskirts of Madrid, she added.

With the relocation, the company plans to advance to the European clinical diagnosis and treatment market based on the business and technological capabilities accumulated in the local genome analysis market. Macrogen Spain branch maintains a leading position in the Spanish next-generation sequencing market with more than 40 percent market share in the third quarter and is expanding its business by attracting customers to Portugal.

The Spanish branch will also provide a rapid and accurate Covid-19 diagnostic service. It is working to sign a business agreement with a local travel agency so that Korean tourists visiting Spain can receive Covid-19 tests without language or cultural difficulties.

"As the world transitions to the "living-with-Covid" regime, the Covid-19 diagnostic test will become common in everyday life," said Manager Cha Seung-heon of the Spanish branch. "We expect that through Macrogen's new Covid-19 diagnosis service, Spanish people and foreign and tourists will receive Covid-19 test results more conveniently and quickly."

Macrogen will also open a new genome center in Milan, Italy, next year, taking one more step forward to building the global network.

"The opening of the new center is a key step in providing customized services for major base countries, which is good news for customers across Europe and Africa," Macrogen Europe CEO Kim Bong-cho said. "Macrogen Europe plans to continue expanding its genome center network to provide the fastest and most reliable service."