Fresenius Kabi to extend pharmaceutical manufacturing in North Carolina

Fresenius Kabi, a global health care company that specializes in medicines and technologies for infusion, transfusion and clinical nutrition, will expand its manufacturing operations in Wilson County, Governor Roy Cooper announced.

The expansion project will bring hundreds of new jobs and more than $100 million in investment to Wilson, where the company currently employs more than 100 people.

“I’m proud that North Carolina is home to so many strong life sciences companies that make life-saving medicines,” said Governor Cooper. “This expansion is welcome news for Eastern North Carolina and our entire state and shows once again that manufacturing thrives in North Carolina today.”

Fresenius Kabi’s plans in North Carolina include expansion of its current pharmaceutical production facility in Wilson and the construction of a new manufacturing facility, also in Wilson. Both sites will be dedicated to manufacturing products used in hospitals and clinics throughout the United States and Canada. Fresenius Kabi has owned its Wilson site, which specializes in the production of ready-to-administer syringes, since January, 2016.

“Our strategy is to produce in the U.S. and to invest in products and operations that meet important customer needs while helping make health care more accessible for patients. We’re pleased to continue this approach at our site in North Carolina,” said Steven R. Nowicki, senior vice president, global operations for Fresenius Kabi North America.

Fresenius Kabi will add a variety of job functions with this expansion, including production specialists, engineers, scientists and managers.

“Manufacturing represents 22 percent of our state’s economic output and we’re one of the country’s largest centers for biotechnology,” said North Carolina Commerce Secretary Anthony M. Copeland. “We congratulate Fresenius Kabi for this decision, which helps North Carolina maintain its leadership in manufacturing and the life sciences.”

Fresenius Kabi’s expansion in Wilson County will be facilitated, in part, by a Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG) approved by the state’s Economic Investment Committee earlier today. Over the course of the 12-year term of this grant, the project will grow the state’s economy by an estimated $853 million.

Under the terms of the grant, the company agrees to create 445 jobs over five years. Using a formula that takes into account the new tax revenues generated by the new jobs, the JDIG agreement then authorizes the potential reimbursement to the company of up to $7.2 million, spread over 12 years. State payments only occur following performance verification by the departments of Commerce and Revenue that the company has met its incremental job creation and investment targets.

JDIG projects result in positive net tax revenue to the state treasury, even after taking into consideration the grant’s reimbursement payments to a given company.

Because Fresenius Kabi chose to locate in Wilson County, classified by the state’s economic tier system as Tier 2, the company’s JDIG agreement also calls for moving as much as $803,300 into the state’s Industrial Development Fund – Utility Account.

The Utility Account helps rural communities finance necessary infrastructure upgrades to attract future business. Even when new jobs are created in a Tier 2 county such as Wilson, the new tax revenue generated through JDIG grants helps more economically challenged communities anywhere in the state. 

Fresenius Kabi recently broke ground on a $250 million expansion at its pharmaceutical manufacturing site in Melrose Park, Illinois. In total, the company employs more than 3,000 people in the U.S. and its U.S. headquarters is in Lake Zurich, Illinois.

The North Carolina Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of N.C. (EDPNC) led the state’s support for the company’s expansion.

Partnering with North Carolina Department of Commerce and the EDPNC on this project were the North Carolina General Assembly, the North Carolina Community College System, The North Carolina Biotechnology Center, Wilson County, and the Wilson Economic Development Council.