Construction starts on new $245M biotech manufacturing facility in Quebec City

QUEBEC CITY—Work is underway on a new $245 million biotech complex in Quebec’s capital.

Medicago, a vaccine maker, officially broke ground on the site in Quebec City’s Estimauville Innovation Area Sept. 18.

The new 44,000 metres-square (approximately 475,000 sq. ft.) complex will house the company’s headquarters as well as production and research and development facilities. SNC-Lavalin provided design services for the site under a $12.5 million contract.

“This new complex will allow us to continue to revolutionize the traditional way of developing and producing vaccines and treatments,” Bruce Clark, Medicago’s president, said in a statement. “It will also give our teams an increased capacity to find new ways to treat a wide range of infectious diseases around the world.”

The biotech firm is based in Quebec City, though it’s a subsidiary of Japan’s Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma following a $357 million 2013 acquisition. It develops and produces plant-based vaccines—a different approach than traditional biotech companies.

Construction on the new facility is scheduled to be complete by winter 2021.