The largest employer in the Bryan/College Station biocorridor has been selected for a $300 million dollar expansion.
Tuesday’s announcement by FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies (FDB) follows the approval of multiple incentives.
Monday night, the Bryan ISD school board approved limiting the valuation increase on the improved property. The president of the Brazos Valley economic development corporation, Matt Prochaska, says that gives a net tax benefit to the company of $11.3 million and $6.5 million in net revenue to Bryan ISD.
Last Thursday, the College Station city council approved reimbursing FDB $4.9 million dollars in property tax revenue over a ten year period. This is a joint agreement with the Bryan city council, which is scheduled to give its official approval Tuesday evening.
A Brazos County official says the county commission will consider a property tax reimbursement at a future meeting.
And the governor’s office announced FDB will receive $1.5 million from the Texas Enterprise Fund.
The 138,000 square foot addition to increase production of vaccines and gene therapies is expected to open by January 1, 2025.
The expansion is promoted to create 150 more full time equivalent jobs with an average annual salary of $80,000 dollars.
Click below for comments from Tuesday’s announcement. Speakers are FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies Texas CEO Dr. Gerry Farrell, Texas House District 14 representative John Raney, College Station mayor Karl Mooney, Bryan mayor Andrew Nelson, Brazos County judge Duane Peters, Texas A&M university vice president for academic and strategic partnerships Dr. Susan Ballabina, Texas A&M system vice chancellor for research Dr. Joe Elabd, and Brazos Valley economic development corporation board chairman Clint Cooper.
News release from FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies:
COLLEGE STATION, Texas, December 14, 2021― FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, a world-leading Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) with experience in the development and manufacture of recombinant biopharmaceuticals and viral gene therapies, today announced an expansion of its single-use manufacturing campus in College Station through the addition of a new cGMP production facility that will double the Company’s advanced therapy and vaccine manufacturing capacity in the U.S. This investment is supported by a $1.5 million Texas Enterprise Fund Award to support the creation of approximately 150 skilled positions including manufacturing and operations by 2024.
The investment of approximately $300 million for facility construction is part of a previously announced $850 million global capital investment package initially outlined by FUJIFILM Corporation in June 2021. The investment will further expand FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies’ manufacturing capabilities to better support its current and future partners in advancing their life-impacting products.
This new facility, expected to be operational by 2024, will add approximately 138,000 sq.ft2 to the existing campus growing the site to 300,000 sq. ft2. The new site will house multiple 500L and 2,000L bioreactors and associated purification equipment deploying single-use technology.
“FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies’ expansion is wonderful news for the hardworking people of College Station-Bryan, and it will bring more opportunities for Texans to develop life-saving technology and treatment,” said Governor Greg Abbott. “The biotechnology industry is growing at a tremendous rate in Texas, and I thank FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies for their continued investment in the Brazos Valley that will keep the Lone Star State competitive in this field.”
“As a leader in the advanced therapy market, this complements FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies’ existing global footprint which now include sites in Watertown, Massachusetts, USA and Darlington, United Kingdom,” said Martin Meeson, chief executive officer, FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies.
“As the need for advanced therapies development and manufacturing capacity grows, we will continue to invest in the right technology and talent to support our partners in bringing to market these life-impacting medicines,” said Gerry Farrell, chief operating officer, FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, Texas. “We are grateful to Governor Greg Abbott, and the State of Texas for its commitment to supporting the growth of the Texas biocorridor, and creating highly-skilled jobs in the state. We are also grateful to the cities of Bryan and College Station and Brazos County for their continued support with this initiative.”
The Texas Enterprise Fund awards support the creation of quality jobs and leverage private investment for business activities designed to strengthen the economic future of the state.
About FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies
FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies is an industry-leading Biologics Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) with locations in Teesside, UK, RTP, North Carolina, College Station, Texas and Hillerød, Denmark. FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies has over thirty years of experience in the development and manufacturing of recombinant proteins, vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, among other large molecules, viral products and medical countermeasures expressed in a wide array of microbial, mammalian, and host/virus systems. The company offers a comprehensive list of services from cell line development using its proprietary pAVEway™ microbial and Apollo™X cell line systems to process development, analytical development, clinical and FDA-approved commercial manufacturing. FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies is a partnership between FUJIFILM Corporation and Mitsubishi Corporation. For more information, go to: www.fujifilmdiosynth.com.
About Fujifilm
FUJIFILM Corporation is an operating company of FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation. FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation, Tokyo, Japan, brings cutting edge solutions to a broad range of global industries by leveraging its depth of knowledge and fundamental technologies developed in its relentless pursuit of innovation. Its proprietary core technologies contribute to the various fields including healthcare, highly functional materials, document solutions and imaging products. These products and services are based on its extensive portfolio of chemical, mechanical, optical, electronic and imaging technologies. For the year ended March 31, 2021, the company had global revenues of $21 billion, at an exchange rate of 106 yen to the dollar. Fujifilm is committed to responsible environmental stewardship and good corporate citizenship. For more information, please visit: https://www.fujifilmholdings.com.
