BRUSSELS (Oct 15): GSK said on Wednesday it could cut as many as 1,217 ‌jobs in Belgium, in the first sign that the British drugmaker's three-year plan to save £1.9 billion ($2.50 billion) in costs is moving into action.

CEO Luke Miels had launched the ​effort in July as part of a broader push to speed ​up drug development and reassure investors that GSK can manage ⁠an approaching patent cliff for its blockbuster HIV drug dolutegravir.

Changes include ​simplifying the company's research, manufacturing and support operations, including through increased use of ​digital tools and more automation.

The proposed cuts would affect some of its more than 8,000 employees at sites in Rixensart, Wavre and Gembloux, but would not include factory ​workers. Globally, GSK had 66,841 employees at the end of last ​year, according to its annual report.

GSK said it will remain the country's largest biopharmaceutical sector ‌employer ⁠and that Belgium will continue to produce the majority of its vaccines.

Shares in the company were up 2.6% at 1430 GMT, in line with broader sector gains.

The plans were presented to unions earlier on Wednesday, Belgian ​newspaper L'Echo reported. ​Unions did not ⁠immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.

The company expects the proposed changes will help its factories to better ​match demand for some of its established vaccines. Last month, ​GSK said ⁠it plans to shut down a vaccine factory in Dresden, Germany next year citing decreased demand for egg-based flu vaccines.

GSK will continue working with Belgian ⁠universities and ​research centres but focus R&D resources on ​high-priority projects, including its mRNA flu vaccine, it said on Wednesday.

Uploaded by Siow Chen Ming