Novartis investment in Slovenia reaches $3.6B with new viral vector production facility
Swiss-based biopharma company Novartis has opened a new $41.2 million viral vector production facility (VIFA One) in Mengeš, Slovenia. The site, which the company began building in 2023, will support cell and gene therapies for the treatment of certain autoimmune and genetic diseases and cancers.
Novartis said the opening of the VIFA One site is the first step by company in viral vector production in Europe, which also solidifies the company’s position in Slovenia as the “largest and most advanced biotechnology center” in the country.
“The fully automated production environment will ensure precision and efficiency at all stages of the production process under one roof, using advanced robotics,” according to Novartis, which said that VIFA One “not only sets a new industry standard” but also significantly increases the company’s capabilities to “deliver breakthrough therapies while meeting the highest quality standards for each product produced.”
Novartis operates in Slovenia through two business units, Novartis LLC and Novartis Pharma Services.
To date, the company has invested approximately $3.6 billion in the country to boost its research, development, and production capacities, as well as sustainable environmental technologies. Novartis has investments of around $516 million that are currently underway in Slovenia at sites in Ljubljana and Mengeš, locations that support more than half of the company’s priority medicines in various stages of development, production, or services.
The current investment in Slovenia is focused on the construction of new facilities and the introduction of technologies, including digitalization, automation, and artificial intelligence, according to Novartis. Among the company’s largest ongoing investments in the country are the construction of a production plant for aseptic products in Ljubljana, as well as a technical development center for biological medicines and a multi-purpose plant to produce active pharmaceutical ingredients in Mengeš.
“Our location in Mengeš has a long tradition of developing and producing of biologics,” Petra Štefanič Anderluh, general manager of Novartis LLC, said in a statement. “Mengeš represents the largest center for modern innovative biotechnology in Slovenia, closely collaborating with Slovenian academic and research institutions.”
In December 2024, Novartis LLC and the University of Ljubljana expanded its collaboration with a new strategic cooperation agreement, which the company said reflected its “commitment to connecting the economic and academic environments to develop employees and promote growth and innovation.”
Last year, Novartis hired more than 560 new staff in Slovenia, bringing its total workforce in the country to over 3,900 employees, according to the company.