GSK is one of the world’s biggest pharmaceutical companies with products ranging from the shingles vaccine Shingrix and the HIV antiretroviral medicine Dovato to general medicines such as the inhaled asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) treatment Trelegy.
The latest investment is GSK’s biggest in the U.S. to date, with the aim of boosting the site with modern drug substance manufacturing and drug product manufacturing equipment. Construction will kick off later this year with the drug substance facility entering operations by the end of 2027 and the drug product facility by the end of 2028.
The new facility at the site will manufacture sterile liquid vaccines and medicines, which are in higher demand than ever before. The site will also house a drug substance facility to manufacture vaccines based on GSK’s Multiple Antigen Presenting System (MAPS) technology, a tool snapped up in the acquisition of Affinivax in 2022 that is designed to make vaccines more effective. The move is also set to generate more than 200 new jobs at the site.
“This landmark investment will establish Marietta as an innovation and manufacturing hub capable of delivering next generation medicines and vaccines to people around the world,” said Regis Simard, President Global Supply Chain, GSK, in a public statement.
Pennsylvania’s government has sweetened the deal for GSK, with the Department of Community and Economic Development providing the pharma giant with more than $20 million in grant money to support the site expansion.
“Marietta, PA, first emerged on the frontlines of vaccination production more than 140 years ago as the Lancaster County Vaccine Farm supplied the nation with life-saving smallpox vaccines,” stated Ezra Rothman, President, EDC Lancaster County, adding that the region will be a “centerpiece of the company’s North American operations for the foreseeable future.”
GSK’s total sales increased from £29.3 billion ($38.1 billion) in 2022 to £30.3 billion ($39.4 billion) in 2023, according to the company’s earnings report. The company also expects a 7% annual growth in its sales up to 2026 with 12 major product launches in the works from 2025 onwards.
GSK has invested close to $1.3 billion in U.S. manufacturing capabilities since 2017. In addition to manufacturing, GSK has been keen to snap up pipeline programs with recent acquisitions including Bellus Health, Aiolos Bio, and Elsie Biotechnologies for $2 billion, $1.4 billion and $50 million respectively.
