German drugmaker Boehringer Ingelheim said it will invest $217 million to upgrade and expand its facility in Fremont, California, as part of its plans to boost production at the plant.
The company said the investment will generate about 300 new jobs at the plant, which focuses mainly on manufacturing treatments for immunology, rheumatology and oncology.
When completed, the expansion is expected to boost manufacturing capacity at the facility by one-third.
"The Bay Area is the largest biotech cluster in the world. We are happy to have made Fremont our home and are grateful for the support we have received from the community and the state of California,” Jens Vogel, president and CEO of Boehringer Ingelheim Fremont, said in a statement. "We have made a commitment to the region and are excited to continue to invest in the Bay Area and expand our workforce to help increase patient access to high-quality medicines."
The state of California recently awarded the company $25.5 million in two separate tax credits to be used at the site. It is the largest such award to a pharmaceutical company.
Last year, Boehringer cut almost 1,000 jobs in the U.S. and Europe as part of its plan to revamp itself following large revenue drops after losing patent protection on some of its older drugs like blockbuster blood pressure drug Micardis.