Lonza plans new pharmaceutical production site in the US

More than 80 jobs and a new production site are planned for Bend, Oregon, as Lonza expands its US pharmaceutical manufacturing network. The Basel-based company said on September 10, 2026, that it intends to build a facility dedicated to spray drying, with operations scheduled to begin in 2029.

The investment amount remains undisclosed. Lonza presented the project as part of a broader effort to strengthen its presence in Bend and broaden the services it offers pharmaceutical customers in the United States.

The planned plant will focus on spray-drying production for drug formulations. The process turns a liquid, emulsion or suspension into a dry, homogeneous powder. Lonza says demand for the technology is increasing as pharmaceutical companies work with more complex molecules and face greater challenges in making those medicines available to the body.

For Switzerland, the announcement reinforces Lonza's position as an international contract manufacturing group headquartered in Basel. The company is placing additional capacity close to one of the world's largest pharmaceutical markets, while retaining its Swiss base and global operating model.

The Bend facility will specialise in spray drying, a manufacturing technique that helps drug developers handle difficult formulations. In the process, manufacturers remove liquid from a solution, emulsion or suspension and produce a consistent powder.

That step can support the development of medicines whose active ingredients do not dissolve easily or whose delivery requires careful control of particle properties. Lonza linked the growing importance of spray drying to the increasing complexity of pharmaceutical molecules and the continuing challenge of bioavailability, meaning how much of a medicine reaches the body's circulation and can take effect.

The company has not released technical details about the plant's planned capacity, equipment or customer pipeline. It also has not disclosed the project's cost. Those details will determine how significantly the new operation adds to Lonza's existing production footprint in the United States.

The announcement does establish the site's intended role. Lonza wants Bend to develop into a specialised hub for particle engineering and bioavailability optimisation, combining manufacturing with technical expertise for pharmaceutical customers.

Lonza is seeking commercial-scale spray-drying capabilities in the US, a move that could give American pharmaceutical customers access to the process closer to home. The company said the Oregon investment would help establish it as a leading pharmaceutical contract manufacturer in the country with commercial-scale capabilities in this field.

Contract manufacturers produce medicines or components on behalf of pharmaceutical companies. Their customers increasingly depend on specialist facilities that can move a formulation from development into larger-scale production while meeting strict quality and regulatory requirements.

Bend already forms part of Lonza's US presence. The planned facility is intended to deepen that role rather than create an isolated operation. By concentrating expertise in particle engineering and bioavailability optimisation, Lonza is positioning the Oregon site around a technical niche with applications across different drug formulations.

The project also reflects the competitive geography of modern pharmaceutical production. Swiss companies remain important players in global drug manufacturing, yet much of the commercial demand, investment and customer base sits outside Switzerland. Expanding in the United States allows Lonza to serve that market directly while continuing to operate from its Basel headquarters.

Construction is planned before a 2029 opening, but the announcement leaves the project's financial scale and production capacity open. Lonza has confirmed the location, the technology and the expected employment impact. It has not published the investment amount or specified how much material the plant will process once operational.

Those figures will be important for assessing the project's effect on both Bend and Lonza's wider manufacturing network. The company expects the site to create more than 80 jobs, adding specialised employment in a sector that requires expertise in pharmaceutical processing, engineering and quality control.

For Basel, the decision offers another example of how a Swiss headquartered company is building international capacity to compete in a global market. The city remains Lonza's base, while the Oregon project extends its manufacturing reach in a market where pharmaceutical production and drug development are expanding.

The next milestones will include construction plans, recruitment and further technical disclosures. If the site opens on schedule, Bend will become a key Lonza location for commercial-scale spray drying in the United States from 2029 onward.