Roche has pledged to upgrade three R&D sites and pointed to the recent announcement of a new home for its cardiovascular, renal and metabolism R&D work as proof that the Swiss pharma is investing serious money in the U.S.
With the industry bracing for the looming threat of pharmaceutical tariffs, Roche has become the latest Big Pharma to announce a ramp-up in investment in its U.S. footprint. In an April 22 release, the Basel, Switzerland-based company said it would spend $50 billion over five years in the country, although not all of this new, and includes the previously announced consolidation of Roche’s cardiovascular, renal and metabolism R&D work at a new center in Harvard’s Enterprise Research Campus.
The pharma unveiled the plans for that site at Allston in Boston last month, which will initially span 30,000 square feet as part of the first phase of development.
In what does appears to be a new R&D commitment, Roche also said this morning that some of the $50 billion would be used for the “significant expansion and upgrading” of three existing pharmaceuticals and diagnostics R&D centers. These include Arizona, which is home to the Ventana tissue diagnostics R&D site in Tucson, as well as centers in Indiana and California.
When asked by Fierce Biotech for more details about the three sites that will be upgraded and what form this work will take, a Roche spokesperson said the company will share additional details “in the coming weeks and months.” Exact financial figures of how much of the $50 billion had already been earmarked, how much is new and what amount will be going into the R&D expansion and upgrades were not broken down.
Roche’s drug production operations are set to benefit from the company’s updated U.S. strategy, including with “expanded and upgraded U.S. manufacturing and distribution capabilities for its innovative medicines and diagnostics portfolio in Kentucky, Indiana, New Jersey, Oregon and California,” according to the release.
The Big Pharma also teased a new 900,000-square-foot manufacturing center “to support Roche’s expanding portfolio of next generation weight loss medicines,” although it has yet to reveal the location. Meanwhile, a new manufacturing facility in Indiana will be built for Roche’s continuous glucose monitoring business.
The combined investments set out this morning are expected to create 1,000 additional jobs at Roche along with a further 11,000 roles “in support of new U.S. manufacturing capabilities,” the company said.
With President Donald Trump’s administration continuing to threaten tariffs on pharmaceutical imports into the U.S., Roche stressed in its release that the new manufacturing capacity heralded this morning would mean the company would “export more medicines from the U.S. than it imports.”
“Roche is a Swiss company with a strong heritage in more than 130 countries globally. Today’s announced investments underscore our long-standing commitment to research, development and manufacturing in the U.S.,” Roche Group CEO Thomas Schinecker said in the release.
“We are proud of our 110 year legacy in the United States which has been a key driver for jobs, innovation and the creation of intellectual property in the U.S., across both our pharmaceutical and diagnostics divisions,” Schinecker added. “Our investments of $50 billion over the next five years will lay the foundation for our next era of innovation and growth, benefiting patients in the U.S. and around the world.”
The latest spending commitments from Roche follow similar announcements in recent months from its Big Pharma peers like Novartis, Johnson & Johnson and Eli Lilly.