List Bio to build new $125M microbiome plant in Indiana, hire 210

List Biotherapeutics, a microbiome player owned by South Korean immunotherapy developer Genome & Co., unveiled plans to build a new $125 million microbiome facility in Fishers, Indiana, as part of the company’s objective to expand its CMO business.

The new 110,000-square-foot facility will be located at the Fishers Life Science & Innovation Park. List said it plans to hire 210 employees at the plant, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2023. The project will expand List's capacity to offer end-to-end manufacturing from early-stage development to late-stage clinical trials and commercialization.

“Our objective with the investment for this new facility is to manufacture live biotherapeutic products (LBP) for Phase 3 clinical trials and for commercial use,” Jonathan Yongwan Jo, president and CEO of List Bio, said in a statement.

List operates in the microbiome arena, developing and manufacturing live biotherapies for clinical trials. The company also makes reagent grade products used in life science research.

In early September, Genome shelled out $27 million to acquire a 60% share of San Jose, California-based List Labs—List Bio's sister company—in a move that was partly to ensure it had a steady supply of bacterial products and proteins to support its development of microbiome-based therapies.

RELATED: Genome of South Korea gains CDMO capability and drug material insurance with $27M purchase of List Labs

Genome is known as one of the first companies to develop immuno-oncology drugs based on microbiomes. It started a trial last year for lead program GEN-001 in combination with anti-PD-1 or PD-L1 therapies, measuring its safety and effectiveness against advanced solid tumors.

Bae Ji-soo, Genome’s chief executive, has said he expects the global market for treatments based on microbiomes to grow from $56.3 million in 2018 to $9.39 billion by 2024.