Biotech company Moderna has chosen Arc’s Harwell science and innovation campus in Oxfordshire as the location of its 145,000 sq ft Modern Innovation and Technology Centre (MITC).
The MITC consists of two buildings and will encompass a research and development and manufacturing facility. It will also include a prefabricated modular clinical biomarker laboratory constructed offsite by Merit in Blyth Valley, Northumberland.
Moderna’s new facility will be located next to the Vaccines Manufacturing and Innovation Centre, which was built at Harwell in May 2020.
Darius Hughes, UK general manager at Moderna, said: “We are delighted to reach this important milestone with Harwell and our lab build partners, Merit. We look forward to joining the Harwell Campus health tech cluster and contributing to the UK’s science and innovation community through investments in R&D.
“When constructed, our facility at Harwell will harness mRNA science to develop and deliver tailored, innovative vaccines to the UK public that address particular threats from respiratory viruses facing our population.”
Stuart Grant, chief executive of Harwell Campus, added: “mRNA technology has the capability to transform how we treat a variety of diseases and enhance UK resilience against future pandemics. I’m delighted to welcome Moderna to Harwell campus, and our thriving health tech cluster. We’re entering a new era of medicine so it’s important that we deliver and build cutting edge facilities to reflect this and spaces that promote innovation and encourage collaboration.”
Bidwells’ head of Oxford, Richard Todd, lead advisor to Arc, is project managing the planning and development of the MITC on behalf of the Brookfield-backed life sciences asset manager and investor.
Todd said: “Today’s announcement builds on the success of the UK’s vaccine rollout programme, which helped open up economies worldwide. Moderna’s 10-year partnership cements Harwell Campus’ as a global centre of excellence, where ground-breaking scientific discovery is achieved with each passing day.
“We’re bringing forward these proposals at breakneck speed to respond to the urgent national need to prepare ourselves for any future pandemic, but at the same time we’re working in a highly consultative manner to ensure Moderna can move straight into their new HQ, by coordinating closely with the team leading its state-of the-art internal design and fit out.”
“Public-private partnerships such as this will help supercharge Britain’s ambition to becoming a ‘scientific superpower’ and we look forward to working closely with all stakeholders to bring this pioneering project forward.”
Construction on the MITC will begin this year, with the facility expected to become operational in 2025, subject to planning and regulatory approvals. The consultant team on the project includes Scott Brownrigg, Hoare Lea and CampbellReith.
