- Evonik has broken ground on a biotechnology expansion at its Fermas site in Slovenská Ľupča, Slovakia, as part of an approximately €80 million investment in its drug substance contract manufacturing business.
- The project will add downstream fermentation technology, create approximately 50 new jobs, and is expected to be completed in early 2028.
Evonik has broken ground on a new biotechnology expansion at its Fermas site in Slovenská Ľupča, Slovakia. The project is part of an approximately €80 million investment to expand the company’s biotechnology capabilities and strengthen its contract manufacturing services for drug substance production. Completion is expected in early 2028.
The expansion will add downstream fermentation technology to the site and increase capacity for the development and manufacture of complex pharmaceutical intermediates. The project is expected to create approximately 50 new jobs and further expand the Fermas site’s role within Evonik’s biotechnology operations.
The investment is intended to strengthen Evonik’s advanced precision fermentation platform for more sustainable industrial manufacturing. The company said fermentation-based processes can offer a more sustainable route for selected pharmaceutical intermediates compared with conventional chemical synthesis by reducing the need for organic solvents and minimizing process-related waste. The Fermas site already operates using 100% green electricity and uses renewable and certified raw materials in selected production processes.
“Today is an important step in our strategy to expand our biotechnology platform and support our customers with innovative, scalable, and sustainable manufacturing solutions. The expansion builds on more than three decades of fermentation expertise at Fermas, which was founded in 1992 and has developed from amino acid production into a biotechnology manufacturing hub serving pharmaceutical, personal care, nutrition, and specialty chemical industries.”
Lauren Kjeldsen, member of the Management Board and Chief Operating Officer at Custom Solutions, Evonik
The project represents Evonik’s second major investment at the site in recent years. Fermas has also become a key location for the company’s biotechnology activities, including the launch of an industrial-scale rhamnolipid biosurfactant production facility. The site maintains relationships with local universities to support its engineering talent pipeline and innovation activities.
