Belgian drugmaker UCB to invest $2B in suburban Atlanta plant, adding
330 jobs
[March 25, 2026]
ATLANTA (AP) — Belgian pharmaceutical company UCB announced
Tuesday that it would invest $2 billion to build a drug-making plant in
suburban Atlanta.
The rapidly growing drugmaker said the plant, which would employ about
330 people upon completion, would anchor its effort to sell more drugs
in the United States.
“This decision reflects our confidence in UCB’s long-term growth and our
deep-rooted commitment to the United States,” company CEO
Jean-Christophe Tellier said in a statement.
UCB had announced in June that it wanted to build a new U.S. factory, as
well as hire more U.S.-based contract manufacturers to make drugs. The
company already has about 2,000 U.S. employees. The company has been
growing rapidly, seeing revenues grow 26% to nearly $9 billion (7.74
billion euros) in 2025. Profit jumped even more, up 46% to $1.81 billion
(1.56 billion euros.)
“The new biologics facility in Gwinnett County, Georgia, is designed to
meet increasing demand and ensure patients receive reliable, timely
access to vital treatments,” UCB executive Jacques Marbehant wrote in a
blog post.
UCB previously developed antihistamines Zyrtec and Xyzal. It’s currently
focused on classes of drugs that treat neurological and autoimmune
diseases. Its current blockbuster is a drug called Bimzelx, which is
used to treat autoimmune disorders including psoriasis and inflammatory
arthritis.
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The North American headquarters of Belgian pharmaceutical company
UCB is seen, Nov. 10, 2014, in Smyrna, Ga. (Paul Abell/AP Images for
UCB, Inc., File)
 The company said it would locate its
plant in a new research park on the eastern fringe of Gwinnett
County that boosters hope could some day rival North Carolina's
Research Triangle Park. Its U.S. headquarters is located in Smyrna,
another Atlanta suburb.
The company also cited proximity to researchers at Georgia Tech in
Atlanta and the University of Georgia in Athens. Leaders of both
universities have been trying to cultivate biomedical research and
manufacturing.
Design and construction are expected to take six to seven years.
Gwinnett County officials said they had committed to $174 million of
incentives, including property tax breaks, fee waivers and
infrastructure improvements to support jobs expected to pay an
average of more than $72,000 a year. The company could also qualify
for millions of dollars in state income tax credits, a waiver on
sales tax on equipment purchases and state-paid job training.
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