The next stop in Vetter Pharma’s long-term growth strategy takes the German CDMO back to its home country, where it will devote approximately 480 million euros ($574.3 million) to the first construction phase for a new state-of-the-art commercial production facility.
Vetter is making moves at the 95-acre industrial property it bought in the western German city of Saarlouis at the end of 2024, with the newly announced investment meant to cover the first construction phase of the planned plant.
The company looks to have the facility up and running by 2031 and will break ground on construction during the second quarter of 2026, it said in a press release.
The construction project is supported by up to 47 million euros ($56 million) in aid from the European Commission. Over the long run, the company envisions being able to create 2,000 jobs at the site.
The Saarlouis location, tucked in the state of Saarland, is a five-hour drive from the company’s Ravensburg headquarters. The new project strengthens the company's “commitment to Germany’s economic landscape while reaffirming our engagement as a strategic partner to the global pharmaceutical market,” Udo J. Vetter commented in the release.
Udo chairs the CDMO’s advisory board and is a member of its owning family, the Vetters.
"With the construction of our new production facility in Germany, we continue on our path to sustainable growth,” he added. “Long-term success derives from striking the right balance between stability and expansion.”
Vetter previously mapped out a 1.5 billion euro ($1.8 billion) investment plan intended to expand its production capacity at existing facilities and to help set up new plants. Last summer, the CDMO began construction on a new site in Des Plaines, Illinois.
In 2024, when Vetter unveiled its plans to expand in both Germany and Illinois, it described Saarland as the location with the “best-fitting conditions” for its commercial operations, former Managing Director Thomas Otto said at the time. In addition, the site could serve to expand the company's range of offerings, he explained.