Member Article

GlaxoSmithKline choose Ulverston for £350m factory

GlaxoSmithKline has confirmed it will be locating its new factory site at Ulverston in Cumbria, as the company invests more than £500m in UK operations.

It is the first new GSK manufacturing facility to be built in the UK for almost 40 years, and has been spurred on by the announcement of a ‘patent box’ in yesterday’s budget to encourage investment in R&D.

The package will introduce a lower rate of corporation tax on profits generated from UK-owned intellectual property.

£350m will be invested in the new biopharmaceutical plant at Ulverston, following an extensive feasibility study which took into consideration other sites such as Barnard Castle, and Irvine and Montrose in Scotland.

GSK’s CEO Sir Andrew Witty said: “The introduction of the patent box has transformed the way in which we view the UK as a location for new investments, ensuring that the medicines of the future will not only be discovered, but can also continue to be made here in Britain.

“Consequently, we can confirm that we will build GSK’s first new UK factory for almost 40 years and that we will make other substantial capital investments in our British manufacturing base.

“In total, this will create up to 1,000 new jobsover the lifetime of the projects. We are also actively considering other investments in our UK manufacturing network which would create further jobs and reinforce the UK’s international competitiveness and as a world leader in life sciences.”

Construction of the Ulverston facility will begin in 2014/15, and is likely to take 6 years to complete.

GSK have suggested that investment at the site could double, if the environment for innovation continues to improve in the UK.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: “This is excellent news, a major investment that will create many highly skilled jobs and provide a great boost to the economy.

“It shows why we are right to cut business tax and focus on making the UK a dynamic and competitive place that can attract exactly this type of high tech investment.

“We have a world class life sciences industry, and I am determined not just to keep it here in the UK but significantly increase it too.

“We cannot be complacent, the industry is changing, and we must change with it. Our innovative life sciences strategy and ground breaking patent box are already making a difference, helping to grow this important industry and ensure the great discoveries of the next decade happen here in British laboratories.”

Elsewhere, the company will also invest more than £100m across its two manufacturing sites in Scotland.

£80m will go towards sites in Ware in Hertfordshire to increase manufacturing capacity for its next-generation respiratory inhalation device, and at Barnard Castle to establish a dermatology manufacturing centre of excellence.

Jackie Arnold, of the Cumbria LEP, commented: “This is turning out to be a tremendous week for Cumbria with this announcement feeling hard on the heels of Cumbria’s successful Rural Growth Networks pilot bid, which will bring millions of pounds in to the county to support rural businesses, and announcement of a further tranche of Growing Places infrastructure funding which is expected to add several million pounds more to the existing £4.5m Cumbria Infrastructure Fund.”

Dr Tim Bradshaw, Head of Enterprise & Innovation policy at the CBI, said: “It is excellent news that such a key player in the pharmaceuticals industry is choosing to invest and create jobs in the UK.

“This decision demonstrates why the Patent Box is so important to boosting business investment, and to attracting and keeping innovative companies in the UK.”

Minister for Universities and Science David Willetts added: “This £500 million programme of investment from GlaxoSmithKline is excellent news for our economy and our life sciences industry.

“It will drive growth, stimulate innovation and create highly skilled jobs across the country.

“It also shows the company’s commitment to maintaining a strong research and development base in the UK - evidence that our life sciences strategy and tax measures are creating the right environment for leading businesses to invest in Britain.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .