Novartis adding API manufacturing to Morrisville site

Novartis will add a new North Carolina facility for active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing for solid dosage tablets, capsules and RNA therapeutics to its campus in Morrisville. 

The new 56,200-square-foot facility, adjacent to a flagship manufacturing hub at Pathway Triangle announced in November 2025, will expand the company’s presence in North Carolina to five facilities across three sites.

“Last year we committed to adding seven new facilities in the US, and today we finalize our plans to expand our US manufacturing and R&D footprint in the US,” said Vas Narasimhan, CEO of Novartis, in a company press release. "By building a connected, end-to-end footprint, we are strengthening our ability to locally develop, produce, and deliver medicines at scale, enabling timely access to innovation for patients in the US.”

"Novartis' announcement of a small molecule API facility in Morrisville helps round out its North Carolina flagship manufacturing hub and signals long-term confidence in our state's ability to support a diverse biomanufacturing industry," said Christian Brown, director of life sciences economic development for the North Carolina Biotechnology Center. "This investment will bring high-quality jobs, accelerate innovation, and further anchor North Carolina as a national leader in the life sciences." 

The company plans to invest an additional $220 million in the newly announced API facility, according to Wake County Economic Development. Kind Street Properties said Novartis' total square footage at Pathway Triangle in Morrisville will be more than 250,000 square feet.

“We’re excited about this expansion, which highlights Wake County’s continued excellence in the life sciences sector,” said Don Mial, chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners. “Companies like Novartis know that we have the skilled workforce they need to fill their new positions with talented, dedicated professionals who will take their business to the next level.”

In November, Switzerland-based Novartis, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, announced $771 million of investments at multiple Research Triangle locations:

•    Upfitting a 202,000-square-foot purpose-built space in Pathway Triangle, the advanced manufacturing campus in Morrisville, specialized in producing solid dosage tablets and capsules, including packaging - a $231 million investment.   

•    Acquiring the former Jaguar Gene Therapy building, a 174,000-square-foot facility at 14 T.W. Alexander Drive in Durham, to establish a biologics drug substance operation - a $400 million investment and the company’s first biologics facility in the U.S.

•    Adding fill/finish capabilities at its new T.W. Alexander Drive facility, as well as its current gene therapy site at 2500 S. TriCenter Blvd. in Durham - a $140 million investment.

The additional facility announced last week “represents a critical step that will strengthen end to end US production capability from active ingredients through finished medicines,” the company said.

This announcement marks the company’s seventh new facility planned within a year of its announced $23 billion investment in US-based manufacturing, research and development. The API facility will support “not only today’s medicines, but also the development and delivery of future innovative therapies for US patients,” according to the company.

“Novartis’s expanded investment reinforces what companies continue to see in Wake County: a deep life sciences ecosystem, a strong talent pipeline, and partners committed to helping projects move from concept to reality,” said Michael Haley, executive director of Wake County Economic Development. “This manufacturing facility adds strategic capacity to the region and will create high-quality jobs that strengthen our economy for years to come.”