PTC Therapeutics, a biotech firm focused on small-molecule drugs and gene therapy, is taking on a huge expansion in New Jersey.

The life sciences company signed a lease for 360K SF of lab and office space across two building in Warren, New Jersey, it said in a May 24 Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

The 17-year lease, which started June 1, has an aggregate base rent of $163M with a rent abatement of $18.6M, and it includes three five-year renewal periods. PTC also has a right of first offer to purchase the two buildings at 400 and 500 Warren Corporate Center Drive.

Jeanine Clemente, PTC's senior director of U.S. and global corporate communications, said the company took advantage of the current real estate market to expand, but it plans to relocate some staff from its South Plainfield, New Jersey, headquarters to Warren.

PTC received a $36.1M tenant improvement allowance for the buildings, which will be renovated to include lab space and collaboration space and conference rooms aligned for a more flexible workspace. Eventually, hundreds of workers will report to the new facility.

Mark Krane, who has been the town administrator for Warren since 1986, confirmed the deal at Warren Corporate Center, a facility originally constructed by AT&T that has previously been occupied by Lucent Technologies, Verizon and Citigroup. The space had previously been vacant for a few years, and it is owned by Warren Corporate Center Properties via VCM Realty, a business with a Philadelphia address.

“This is a positive for the property owner and the township,” Krane said.

New Jersey’s large corporate campuses and pharmaceutical sites have been prime real estate for biomanufacturing and life sciences sector expansion. It’s a key resource for regional growth within the New York City metro biotech cluster.