Biopharmaceutical New Technologies (BioNTech), the Germany-based multinational biotechnology company, has said that it is planning to invest up to £1 billion over the next 10 years in the UK to broaden its research and development activities for innovative medicines. Said to be one of the “biggest investments in the history of UK life sciences,” the investment is being backed by the UK Government with £129 million of grant funding over the 10 year period.
The investment is part of BioNTech’s plan to increase its presence in the UK, which will see the creation of two new R&D hubs, the first of which will be based on Cambridge, along with an AI hub which will be based on BioNTech’s planned UK headquarters in London.
The Cambridge hub will be focused on R&D in genomics, oncology, structural biology and regenerative medicine. The London AI hub will be led by InstaDeep, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BioNTech. This hub will enable medical research using AI, including looking into and understanding disease causes, drug target selection and predictive analysis.
These developments are expected to lead to the creation of more than 400 jobs over the 10 years. These jobs will include researchers in clinical and scientific drug development, bioinformatics and supporting functions. It is anticipated that the creation of BioNTech’s supply chain will lead to further jobs.
Commenting on the agreement with the UK Government, CEO and co-founder of BioNTech, Uğur Şahin said: “This agreement marks the next chapter of our successful strategic partnership with the UK government. Together we have already made a meaningful difference in expanding access to investigational personalised cancer therapies for patients. Now we are taking the next step to accelerate and broaden our research and development efforts advancing towards our vision to translate science into survival for patients.”
This latest development extends the relationship between the UK Government and BioNTech. During 2023 the UK government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the company by which cancer patients received early access to trials for personalised mRNA therapies. BioNTech is among the pioneers of mRNA therapy, used during the covid-19 pandemic.
The UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves said: “This is another testament to confidence in Britain being one of the world’s top investment destinations and a global hub for life sciences.”
The Government noted based on research from the Academy of Medical Sciences, which was released in 2018 that that an investment of £1 in medical research delivers a return of 25p every year after.
Steve Bates CEO of the UK BioIndustry Association added: “The UK has a once in a lifetime opportunity to leverage its strong position to attract investment from global investors to create well-paid jobs and scale UK companies, if the upcoming Life Sciences Sector Plan can address long-standing structural challenges in the financing and commercial environment.”
Life Sciences is one of the priority sectors playing a central role in the UK Government’s upcoming Industrial Strategy. The sector is currently worth £108 billion to the economy and supports more than 300,000 jobs across the UK.
Research commissioned by SCI indicates that that there is a major prize to be won by the UK as the life science sector has been missing out on £15 billion a year over the last decade, having fallen behind international rivals in competitiveness.
Further reading
• Life sciences and clean energy core to new Industrial Strategy
• R&D: Here's how pharma and chemicals industries are performing
• Lilly invests in UK life sciences to boost early-stage biotech
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