Roche has become the latest major drugmaker to announce a significant investment in the US, committing $50bn into the country over the next five years.
The investment will bolster the company’s pharmaceutical and diagnostics divisions and is expected to create more than 12,000 new jobs, including 1,000 at Roche.
The funds will go towards building a 900,000 square foot manufacturing centre at a yet-to-be announced location to support Roche’s expanding portfolio of weight loss drugs, as well as establishing a gene therapy manufacturing facility in Pennsylvania and a manufacturing facility for continuous glucose monitoring in Indiana.
The investment also covers a new centre in Massachusetts that will serve as a hub for the company’s new cardiovascular, renal and metabolism research and development (R&D) efforts.
Thomas Schinecker, Roche Group chief executive officer, said: “We are proud of our 110 year legacy in the US which has been a key driver for jobs, innovation and the creation of intellectual property in the US, across both our pharmaceutical and diagnostics divisions.
“Our investments of $50bn over the next five years will lay the foundation for our next era of innovation and growth, benefitting patients in the US and around the world.”
Alongside the new sites, Roche will use the investment to expand and upgrade its manufacturing and distribution capabilities for its medicines and diagnostics portfolio in Kentucky, Indiana, New Jersey, Oregon and California, as well as its existing pharmaceuticals and diagnostics R&D centres in Arizona, Indiana and California.
The announcement comes shortly after Novartis unveiled plans to invest $23bn into its US-based infrastructure over the next five years, allowing it to produce 100% of its key medicines end-to-end in the country.
The commitment made earlier this month will expand Novartis’ current manufacturing, research and technology presence in the US with ten facilities, including seven new sites.
Johnson & Johnson also said in March that it would be investing more than $55bn into the US over the next four years, while Eli Lilly unveiled a significant US commitment in February.