Pharmaceutical, Aviation R&D Projects Bring $55M To Virginia

Civica will invest $27.8 million in a pharmaceutical testing facility in Chesterfield County; DroneUp will invest a total of $27.2 million in two facilities.

In Virginia, Civica Inc. will invest $27.8 million to establish a new laboratory testing facility at  Chesterfield County’s Meadowville Technology Park. The non-profit company will build a 55,000-square-foot facility and create 51 new jobs to support Civica’s Petersburg pharmaceutical manufacturing operation through quality testing and development of new products. In addition, it will host a scale-up manufacturing facility operated by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Medicines for All Institute, which will create additional employment.

“With this investment, Civica is building on its long-term commitment to patients – and to Virginia,” said Ned McCoy, Civica’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “This lab will support a skilled and highly trained workforce who will ensure Civica’s affordable insulin as well as other essential medicines meet the highest standards.”

Civica Virginia
(Image: Civica)

Civica is a nonprofit generic drug company launched in 2018 to address the problem of chronic generic drug shortages and high drug prices. In January 2021, Civica announced that it will establish a 140,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility to manufacture sterile injectable drugs in the City of Petersburg. In addition to manufacturing essential medicines hospitals use daily, Civica recently announced plans to manufacture and distribute insulins that, once approved, will be available to people with diabetes at significantly lower prices than insulins currently on the market. Civica’s new laboratory testing facility in Chesterfield County is expected to be operational soon after the Petersburg plant reaches commercial scale in 2024.

The construction of the lab will be supported by an award from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to the Alliance for Building Better Medicine, a coalition that aims to expand essential medicines manufacturing in the Richmond-Petersburg region. Civica will provide matching capital.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) worked with Chesterfield County to secure the project for Virginia. Governor Youngkin approved a $400,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund to assist Chesterfield County with the project.

“Civica’s investment is another transformational step forward in strengthening the advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing hub in the Richmond-Petersburg region and positioning Virginia as a key player in domestic drug manufacturing in America,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. “Civica is a critical partner in the Commonwealth’s emerging pharmaceutical ecosystem that will ensure access to affordable, lifesaving medications while providing high-quality jobs and an incredible boost to our economy.”