The new research and development centre will be located at the Cambridge Biomedical Campus
Pharmaceutical company GSK will shut its main research and development hub in Stevenage and open a new flagship site in Cambridge amid aims to slash costs by £1.9 billion to fund investment plans. GSK has said the new 300,000sq ft centre in Cambridge will house more than 1,000 scientists, with a phased move for staff by 2029.
The group said some staff currently based at Stevenage, where around 1,800 people work currently, will also move to its nearby Ware site, which is set to be upgraded.
GSK is hoping all Stevenage workers will relocate to either Cambridge or Ware. The group is spending £400 million over the next three years on the changes.
It revealed in half-year results that annual costs are set to be cut by £1.9 billion over the next three years to fund the investment, ramp up R&D, and help offset the hit when one of its key HIV treatments – dolutegravir – comes off its patent. It is understood there will be some roles affected, such as in support services, but GSK did not confirm numbers.
Luke Miels, chief executive at GSK, said: “To fund investment in the late-stage portfolio and R&D, we are starting a three-year cost savings programme to simplify the organisation and to reallocate capital and resources. Savings will primarily be reinvested, with some used to improve margins and profitability in the dolutegravir patent expiry period.”
The new R&D centre is being developed by Prologis and is within the wider Cambridge Biomedical Campus – one of the largest of its kind in Europe. The move will place GSK close to AstraZeneca’s major R&D site at the campus.
The new centre will be located at Discovery Drive on the biomedical campus. It is planned across three interconnected buildings. Work has begun on the first of these, a second has full planning permission, and a third recently received planning committee approval, subject to formal planning permission.
Andrew Blevins, SVP, Life Sciences, Prologis, said: “GSK’s decision is a powerful endorsement of Cambridge Biomedical Campus and the unique ecosystem that has been created here. Prologis invested ahead of demand at Discovery Drive because we believed global life-sciences organisations would continue to choose Cambridge.
“Having the right specialist infrastructure available allows companies to establish world-class facilities more quickly and strengthens the UK’s ability to compete for internationally significant life-sciences investment.”
Prologis said it is working in partnership with Cambridgeshire County Council to deliver the third and fourth phases of the project, with potential to create a further 2.4 million sq ft of life-sciences space. This represents an additional investment ambition of $4 billion (£3 billion) over the next two decades.
Paul Bristow, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, said: “Cambridge Biomedical Campus has become one of Europe’s leading centres for life sciences because it brings together pioneering research, outstanding healthcare and ambitious businesses in one place. GSK’s expanded presence is another vote of confidence in our region and demonstrates the continued appeal of Cambridgeshire as a place where global organisations choose to innovate and grow.”
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