Roche is investing 790 million in its Basel location

Roche is investing 790 million Swiss francs in the future of its Basel headquarters campus. With Building 51 and the modernization of the adjacent Building 50, a new production infrastructure for synthetic active ingredients will be created by the end of 2030. The project aims to more closely integrate research, development, and production and strengthen Basel’s role in the company’s global production network.

The project consists of two parts. Building 50 is being modernized and expanded. Right next to it, Building 51 is being constructed as a new building. To make way for this, the former production building, Building 66, was demolished.

Building 51 was designed by Luca Selva Architects. The new building will have seven stories, stand 40 meters tall, and have a gross floor area of approximately 6,700 square meters. Building 50 has a gross floor area of approximately 5,240 square meters. Together, the buildings are intended to consolidate as many steps of drug development and production as possible under one roof.

Becoming More Digital, Becoming Faster
Roche aims to combine modern production technologies with digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence at the SMF. The goal is not merely to increase capacity. The focus is on more complex active pharmaceutical ingredients, shorter transitions between development and production, and more flexible manufacturing.

This focus is significant for Basel as a life sciences hub. Today, competition arises not only from research successes but also from the ability to manufacture new therapies reliably, efficiently, and in compliance with stringent regulatory requirements. Modern production infrastructure thus becomes a strategic location factor.

200 Specialized Employees, Not 200 New Jobs
The new facility is designed to accommodate approximately 200 highly qualified employees. Roche refers to this number as jobs at the SMF. However, according to the site manager, employees are being transferred from existing production areas to the new work environment. Therefore, this does not necessarily amount to 200 additional jobs.

This clarification is important. The direct impact on employment lies less in a large-scale job creation and more in the long-term safeguarding and modernization of sophisticated production work at the Basel site.

A commitment to the site on a scale
With the laying of the cornerstone on September 21, Roche officially began construction. Completion is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2030. The total investment in the SMF has risen from 570 million to 790 million Swiss francs, compared to the figure communicated at the end of 2023.

In Basel and Kaiseraugst, Roche is currently investing a total of approximately 1.4 billion Swiss francs in ongoing construction projects. This is a clear commitment to the location. At the same time, it demonstrates that a global pharmaceutical company secures its competitiveness not only in research laboratories. It also stems from facilities where new molecules are transformed into reliable medicines.