Moderna picks Harwell Science Campus as new vaccine base

Biotech company Moderna – which became a household name when it developed one of the first Covid-19 vaccines – has chosen to build its new technology centre at Harwell Science Campus in Oxfordshire.

Its Moderna Innovation and Technology Centre is likely to create hundreds of jobs, and will be operational by 2025, said the firm.

The MITC development will be made up of two buildings totalling 145,000 sq. ft and will encompass a research, development and manufacturing facility, providing the UK public with access to cutting-edge mRNA vaccines for a wide range of respiratory diseases.

The MITC will also include a clinical biomarker laboratory that will be constructed by the offsite construction specialist Merit.

Merit will build the prefabricated modular laboratory entirely in Blyth Valley, Northumberland, which will then be installed at Harwell.

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.”

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Stuart Grant, Chief Executive of Harwell Campus said: “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.”

Moderna is the latest organisation to join Harwell’s Health Tech cluster, which has grown to over 70 life science organisations since it launched in 2016.

The campus’ unique combination of expertise in the development of vaccines and mRNA technologies includes Europe’s largest collection of open access, publicly funded scientific facilities, such as The Rosalind Franklin Institute and the Nucleic Acid Therapy Accelerator and commercial organisations including: Catalent, Vaccitech, NeoVac and Nanovation Therapeutics.

Moderna’s new MITC is the next development to start at Harwell and is in addition to the three million sq. ft of development already planned at the campus.

The next phase of growth will see a combination of lab, office, and R&D buildings being built including the new Zeta building a 21,000sq ft ‘mid-tech’ development.

The masterplan development at Harwell is aimed at reducing the chronic shortage of lab space available across Oxfordshire.

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