Lonza Completes $1.2 Billion Acquisition of Roche’s Vacaville Biologics Manufacturing Site

Oct 11, 2024 07:39 CST Updated 07:39

Lonza

Pharmaceutical R&D Developer

Genentech

Pharmaceutical R&D Manufacturer

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Source: YX IVD Raw Materials

Reprint: IVD Tool Man

Basel, Switzerland and Vacaville, USA | October 2024

As one of the largest development and manufacturing organizations in the global healthcare industry, Lonza announced that it has successfully completed the acquisition of Genentech's large-scale biologics production facility located in Vacaville, California, USA, from Roche. The acquisition price was $1.2 billion.

The following is the original English version of the news:

The Vacaville facility significantly extends Lonza’s capacity for mammalian manufacturing in the US, the world’s largest pharmaceutical market. It creates a significant West Coast commercial manufacturing presence close to San Francisco’s pharma and biotech hub, complementing Lonza’s existing East Coast manufacturing site in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, as well as its international network across Europe and Asia Pacific.

With a total bioreactor capacity of around 330,000 liters, the Vacaville site is one of the largest biologics manufacturing facilities in the world. This acquisition significantly extends manufacturing capacity for late-stage clinical and commercial products, and new molecules on the path to commercialization within the Lonza network. The site joins the Mammalian business unit within Lonza’s Biologics division, with more than 750 Vacaville colleagues now being employed directly by Lonza.

Wolfgang Wienand, CEO, Lonza, commented: “The successful acquisition of the Vacaville site marks a major milestone for Lonza, and for our commitment to deliver long-term value for our customers and shareholders. As the Vacaville site joins our Biologics division, we look forward to bringing new customer projects into the facility to meet sustained demand for commercial biologics manufacturing across our business. I am also delighted to welcome more than 750 highly skilled Vacaville colleagues into our global team, as they begin a new chapter with Lonza.”

The acquisition of the large-scale mammalian manufacturing site complements Lonza’s ongoing investments in large-scale bioconjugation in Visp (CH) and drug product manufacturing in Stein (CH), supporting its ability to meet demand for the large-scale, end-to-end manufacturing of complex biologics. Lonza plans to invest approximately CHF 500 million to further upgrade the facility and add capabilities to meet demand for the next generation of mammalian biologics therapies.

The products previously manufactured at the site will now be supplied by Lonza to Roche with committed minimum volumes over the medium term, phasing out over time as the site transitions to serve alternative customers.

The significant expansion of Lonza's mammalian manufacturing capabilities in the U.S., the world’s largest pharmaceuticals market, is now a reality with the Vacaville facility. It creates a substantial West Coast commercial manufacturing presence near San Francisco’s pharma and biotech hub, complementing Lonza’s existing East Coast manufacturing base in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, as well as its international network across Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

With a total bioreactor capacity of approximately 330,000 liters, the Vacaville facility is one of the largest biologics manufacturing plants in the world. This acquisition significantly expands Lonza's network capabilities for late-stage clinical and commercial product manufacturing as well as the commercialization of new molecules. The facility joins Lonza’s Biologics Division’s Mammalian Business Unit, and now more than 750 Vacaville colleagues are directly employed by Lonza.

Lonza CEO Wolfgang Wienand commented, "The successful acquisition of the Vacaville facility is an important milestone for Lonza and a testament to our commitment to long-term value for our customers and shareholders. With the Vacaville site joining our biologics segment, we look forward to bringing new client projects to the facility to meet the ongoing demand for commercial biologics manufacturing in our business. I am also delighted to welcome more than 750 highly skilled colleagues from Vacaville to our global team as they embark on a new chapter with Lonza."

This large-scale acquisition of a mammalian manufacturing facility complements Lonza's ongoing investments in large-scale bioconjugation (Visp, CH) and drug product manufacturing (Stein, CH), supporting its ability to meet the demand for large-scale, end-to-end manufacturing of complex biologics. Lonza plans to invest approximately 500 million Swiss francs to further upgrade the facility and expand its capacity to meet the needs of next-generation mammalian biologics therapies.

Products previously manufactured at the plant will now be supplied to Roche by Lonza, with a minimum volume commitment in the medium term. These commitments will gradually decrease as the plant transitions to serving other customers.

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