Lonza acquires biologics plant from Roche for $1.2 billion

Lonza signs an agreement to acquire Genentech's biologics manufacturing site in Vacaville, California, from Roche. The Swiss pharmaceutical company announced plans to sell the site in May 2023.

The $1.2 billion acquisition of Genentech's manufacturing facility in Vacaville, California, will significantly increase Lonza's large-scale biologics manufacturing capabilities. This will enable the Swiss CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) to meet the needs for commercial contract manufacturing of mammalian cell culture antibodies from customers with existing commercial products as well as molecules being commercialized within the Lonza network.

The facility, located between San Francisco and Sacramento, currently has a total bioreactor capacity of approximately 330,000 liters, making it one of the largest biologics manufacturing facilities in the world. Under the terms of the agreement, Lonza will provide employment opportunities for approximately 750 Genentech employees at the Vacaville facility.

The acquisition, expected to be completed in the second half of this year, is expected to boost sales for the Basel-based group. Lonza raised its growth forecast for 2024-2028 to 12-15% from 11-13%.

Demand for commercial biologics capacity across the CDMO industry is expected to remain elevated. The acquisition of the Vacaville facility expands Lonza's U.S. presence and complements Lonza's biologics facility in Portsmouth on the East Coast and its international network in Europe and Asia.

Lonza plans to invest approximately €513 million to upgrade and expand production capacity at the Vacaville plant. Products currently produced at the Roche site will be supplied by Lonza with a mid-term volume commitment that will be phased out as the site transitions to other customers.