A Swiss pharmaceutical company plans to build its latest U.S. manufacturing facility in an up-and-coming North Texas suburb.
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Novartis confirmed on Wednesday that it will build a 46K SF radioligand therapy manufacturing site in Denton. The project is part of the company’s $23B plan announced last year to boost its U.S. research and manufacturing footprint.
Construction on the Denton facility is expected to begin later this year and be completed in 2028.
Radioligand therapy, or RLT, has the potential to “revolutionize” cancer care, Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan said.
“The addition of our fifth RLT manufacturing site in the US strengthens our ability to meet growing demand, building the capabilities needed to deliver these next-generation treatments with the speed and precision they require,” Narasimhan said in a statement.
The Denton City Council approved a $3.2M incentive package in December to help bring the pharmaceutical company’s $280M investment to the empty facility at 2101 Shady Oak Drive. Novartis plans to spend more than $70M on improvements to the three-building facility and to add around $200M in equipment.
The incentive package will give Novartis a 50% tax abatement for 10 years on new improvements and a Chapter 380 agreement that would provide grants for the job creation and a sales tax rebate on construction materials.
The project could generate nearly $5M in revenue for Denton over the next decade, city officials said in December.
The Denton location is one of seven new facilities Novartis plans to open in the U.S. as part of its $23B investment. Over the last 10 months, the company has started work on four new facilities for manufacturing and research and development, begun three plant expansions and announced two additional sites.
To receive the incentive package, Novartis must create at least 150 jobs in Denton. Its press release says the facility will bring positions in bioengineering, advanced manufacturing, quality and operations.
Denton Economic Development Director Brittany Sotelo told Bisnow before Novartis’ announcement that the city has been exploring the life sciences field in an effort to bring more high-paying jobs to the area.
“There's more opportunities for life science companies, potentially pharmaceutical companies, because we have land available,” Sotelo told Bisnow. “A lot of these companies want to own land versus lease.”
The availability of land is a major component in Denton's rapidly growing population and expanding job market. Those factors have grabbed the attention of commercial real estate stakeholders who believe Denton is poised to experience the kind of population and development booms that turned Frisco into one of the region's premier destinations.
North Texas’ life sciences market trails heavy hitters like Boston and San Francisco, but industry experts said in August that the region’s 4M SF of facilities offer plenty of space for startups to grow and find partners.
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