Lonza to Buy 5 US Plants From Merck KGaA, Adding About 1,100 Staff

Lonza, the Swiss contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), has signed a definitive agreement to buy five US manufacturing sites from Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. The company announced the deal on Nov. 3. About 1,100 employees at the sites are set to join Lonza.

What happened

The five sites sit in four states. According to Pharma Manufacturing, they are:

• St. Louis, Missouri: bioconjugates.
• Madison and Verona, Wisconsin: high-potency payload-linkers.
• Carlsbad, California: viral vectors, with aseptic fill-finish.
• Indianapolis, Indiana: lipid nanoparticles, liposomes and PEGylated proteins, with aseptic fill-finish.

Lonza did not give an exact price. It put the enterprise value in the low- to mid-triple-digit millions of Swiss francs, paid in cash. On a call with analysts, CEO Wolfgang Wienand pointed to roughly the middle of a CHF 100 million to CHF 600 million range, BioSpace reported.

The deal takes Lonza from four US CDMO sites to nine. Its US workforce would grow to more than 6,000 people. Lonza expects the sites to bring in about CHF 250 million in sales in 2028, at a lower margin than its own business.

Closing is expected in mid-2027, subject to customary conditions. Until then, the businesses continue to operate independently.

Why it matters

The sites give Lonza US capacity in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), viral vectors for cell and gene therapies, and drug delivery. Its ADC work is now centred on its site in Visp, Switzerland, according to BioSpace.

Wienand told analysts that capacity use at the sites is well below what Lonza thinks it can reach, BioSpace reported. He also said Lonza expects the global bioconjugation market to grow from about $30 billion now to about $110 billion by 2033.

For Merck KGaA, the sale is part of a plan to concentrate its life science portfolio. Group CEO Kai Beckmann said a more focused portfolio would let the company direct its investment toward scientific leadership.

The deal follows Lonza's 2024 purchase of a Roche biologics plant in Vacaville, California. In that deal, Lonza agreed to make drugs for Roche at the site. This time is different, BioSpace reported. A Lonza executive said the Merck KGaA business served mainly outside customers, and told analysts not to assume a contract with Merck KGaA.

What it means for people in the industry

About 1,100 staff in Missouri, Wisconsin, California and Indiana are set to move from Merck KGaA to Lonza when the deal closes. Lonza said its first priorities after closing include keeping customers supplied and supporting employees through the transition.

Lonza said it plans to grow the sites using existing spare capacity and room to expand. It said further investment would follow market demand. Watch for news on integration plans and site investment once the deal closes.

See open pharma jobs in the US and Canada

Sources

• Lonza Signs Agreement to Acquire US CDMO Network from Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and Significantly Expands its US Presence, Lonza (company release)
• Lonza agrees to buy 5 Merck KGaA facilities to accelerate US expansion, BioSpace
• Lonza to acquire five CDMO sites from Merck KGaA, more than doubling US footprint, Pharma Manufacturing