Pharma Company To Build $2B Plant At Georgia Innovation Campus
A Belgium-based biopharmaceutical company is planning a 460K SF drugmaking facility to anchor Gwinnett County’s long-planned life sciences campus along Georgia State Route 316.
UCB announced Tuesday it would invest $2B to build the manufacturing facility at the 2,000-acre Rowen campus. The plant, which will be developed in the next five to six years, would have a $5B economic impact on the region and generate some 330 permanent jobs, UCB CEO Jean-Christophe Tellier said in a press release.
The planned facility is the first major win for Rowen since the project was launched in 2020. The Rowen Foundation has sought to lure biopharmaceutical, medicine, environmental and agricultural technology firms to the master-planned innovation campus in Gwinnett County.
“This is really for us the market validation that we’ve been striving for,” Rowen CEO Mason Ailstock told Bisnow.
UCB, which has a U.S. headquarters in Smyrna, plans to employ advanced technologies at the plant, including artificial intelligence, robotics and automation.
The firm, which makes such drugs as Cimzia for Crohn’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis and Neupro for Parkinson’s disease, selected Rowen after evaluating multiple locations in the U.S., according to the release.
Tellier said the company “chose to stay in a state that offers outstanding talent, a strong manufacturing tradition, and an ecosystem designed for sustainable, long-term success.”
According to Rowen, Gwinnett County committed around $174M in incentives and infrastructure investments for UCB’s project, including property tax abatements and utility improvements. Georgia Department of Economic Development Director EJane Caraway handled negotiations on behalf of the state.
UCB’s announcement represents “one of the largest investments in state history and [establishes] both the Rowen facility and Georgia as a true hub of innovation in this field,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in the release.
In December, Rowen announced it tapped Holder Construction to manage the construction of a 10K SF innovation hub facility that will be the first ground-up project at the site. Rowen Convergence Center will be designed to bring together researchers, entrepreneurs, life sciences leaders and community partners for various programming, research and innovation showcases.
Ailstock said the innovation hub, which is set to deliver next year, was one of the key drivers for UCB’s decision to locate to Rowen.
“They’re buying into this larger vision and community,” he said.
Colliers Senior Vice President Monty Turner told Bisnow he and Colliers Senior Vice President Anthony Burnett represented UCB in the site selection process.
