- Sandoz has inaugurated a USD 99 million biosimilar development centre in Ljubljana, Slovenia, to expand its in-house biosimilar development capabilities.
- The 10,000 m² facility employs more than 200 scientists and forms part of Sandoz’s broader investment of more than USD 1.1 billion in Slovenia to establish an end-to-end biosimilar development and manufacturing hub.
Sandoz has inaugurated a new biosimilar development centre in Ljubljana, Slovenia, as part of its strategy to strengthen and expand its in-house biosimilar capabilities. The USD 99 million facility covers approximately 10,000 square metres and employs more than 200 scientists. It supports end-to-end drug substance and drug product development and is integrated with the company’s development network in Germany and the United Kingdom.
The new centre is designed to support biosimilar development through advanced analytics and data science capabilities. According to Sandoz, the facility is connected with its bioanalytical and bioassay laboratories in Holzkirchen, Germany, and its device development operations in Cambridge, UK, creating an integrated development network.
The facility is the first of three major projects included in Sandoz’s investment programme in Slovenia. The company said the development centre forms part of a broader investment of more than USD 1.1 billion aimed at creating an end-to-end in-house biosimilar development and manufacturing hub in Europe. Additional projects include facilities in Lendava for drug substance production and Brnik for sterile production and packaging.
Sandoz stated that the new centre will support its biosimilar pipeline and complement manufacturing investments intended to move biosimilar products into production. The company also noted its recent acquisition of a biosimilar site in Toulouse, France as part of its broader network expansion.
“This new state-of-the-art biosimilar development centre in Ljubljana represents a major step up in our internal biosimilar development capabilities and is now a central pillar of our in-house biosimilar development and manufacturing network.”
Richard Saynor, Chief Executive Officer of Sandoz
