UCB Invests $2B in New Biologics Manufacturing Site in Georgia

Belgium-based UCB has announced plans to establish a major new biologics manufacturing facility in Gwinnett County, Georgia.

UCB said the investment is expected to generate approximately $5 billion in economic impact and create over 330 high-skilled jobs.

The project represents a capital investment of roughly $2 billion and marks UCB’s first dedicated biologics manufacturing site in the US. 

In a press release, UCB said once operational, the facility will produce complex biologic medicines around the clock, mainly for the US market. The company also said the new facility will “strengthen UCB supply resilience globally while the new campus will serve as a hub for our US manufacturing operations, underscoring our long-term commitment to the US.”

The facility will be located within the Rowen development, a 2,000-acre innovation hub designed to bring together research institutions, companies and talent across life sciences, agriculture and environmental fields.

“This decision reflects our confidence in UCB’s long-term growth and our deep-rooted commitment to the United States,” Jean Christophe Tellier, UCB’s CEO, said in a statement. 

“By investing in Gwinnett County and the Rowen Foundation in Georgia, where our US headquarters have been based for more than three decades, we are strengthening our biologics manufacturing capabilities, supporting our innovation pipeline and creating high-quality jobs in a state that offers outstanding talent, a strong manufacturing tradition and an ecosystem designed for sustainable, long-term success.”

Spanning approximately 460,000 square feet across 79 acres, approximately the size of eight football fields, the campus will serve as a cornerstone of UCB’s global manufacturing network. 

The facility is located near Dacula, Georgia, which is about 45 minutes from UCB’s US headquarters based in Smyrna, Georgia, a suburb in Atlanta’s northwest corridor.

UCB is modeling the project after North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park (RTP), which is positioned among three major universities. Similarly, Rowen is located in the Atlanta metropolitan area between Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of Georgia, and in close proximity to Emory University as well.

UCB said the site “provides access to a deep and expanding talent pool across science, engineering and advanced manufacturing. The surrounding community also offers a strong quality of life and a rapidly growing workforce to support world-class manufacturing capabilities.”

Like North Carolina’s RTP park, which is located centrally to three of the state’s key universities, the Rowen development is situated near Emory University, Georgia Tech University and the University of Georgia.

In a blog post, Jacques Marbehant, Transformational Programs & Infrastructure, said: “Having called Georgia home for over three decades, we recognize the state’s unique advantages. Choosing the Rowen Development in Gwinnett County (TAG) wasn’t just a practical decision; it felt like the right next step in our US journey.”

In addition to the hundreds of permanent jobs that will be created, UCB said 1,000 construction jobs will be generated during the build phase.

Design and construction are projected to span six to seven years. Officials in Gwinnett County said they have committed $174 million in incentives to support the project, including property tax abatements, fee waivers and infrastructure upgrades tied to jobs expected to offer average annual salaries above $72,000. 

The company may also be eligible for additional state-level support, including income tax credits, sales tax exemptions on equipment purchases and workforce training programs funded by the state.

“We are thrilled that UCB has chosen Gwinnett County to advance its global operations and pioneering innovations,” said Chairwoman Nicole Love Hendrickson, Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners, in a statement. “An investment of this magnitude was exactly what we envisioned when we committed to establishing Rowen as a center for collaboration and discovery. As one of the most dynamic and diverse counties in the nation, Gwinnett connects UCB to a highly skilled, globally connected talent pool.”

Related: J&J Commits $1B to Next-Gen Cell Therapy Manufacturing in Pennsylvania

UCB has emerged as one of the industry’s fastest-growing players, with a 26% jump in revenue last year to €7.74 billion (about $8.7 billion). Since 2017, its workforce has expanded by 68%, including a 121% surge in R&D roles. The company now employs nearly 2,000 people in the US and more than 9,000 worldwide.

The company has won 16 FDA approvals or indication expansions, nine of which were achieved in just the past three years.

UCB’s latest FDA approval was for Kygevvi (doxecitine and doxribtimine) in November 2025. It is the first and only targeted treatment for adults and children with thymidine kinase 2 deficiency (TK2d), a rare, life-threatening genetic disease.

With US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats and push for domestic manufacturing of medicines, major pharma companies, including Johnson & Johnson, Roche, Eli Lilly and Novartis, have announced massive investments in US manufacturing.