Biotech South

Major Biotech Move Made by North Carolina

The Golden LEAF Foundation, the group formed in 1999 to use $2.3 billion of North Carolina's tobacco settlement shares, is investing $60 million to train workers in the state for work in biotechnology. The money will be given as grants to N.C. State and other colleges and universities in the state to train workers to fill jobs in various biotech fields. The motivation behind the grants is to train and retrain labor for work in drug and vaccine production and a myriad of biotechnology innovations from agriculture. Existing biotech companies in the Tar Heel State have committed another $4.5 million for the training program.

Northern Virginia Biotech Prospects Better Be Good

At a time when the biotech industry is in a state of flux, areas in Northern Virginia are investing in infrastructure like no other place in the South, including the powerful Raleigh-Durham region. New York-based T-Rex Capital is purchasing 140 acres from IBM in Prince William County to create a 250-acre biotech park that is located just north of Eli Lilly's planned 600,000-square-foot, 750-employee plant. The acreage is part of the 2,000-acre Innovation@PrinceWilliam, a park designed for high-tech and biotech. Most of the park has not been developed. Other areas of Northern Virginia are investing in infrastructure in large amounts to lure biotech industries. Loudoun County is the new home of George Washington University's bioscience facilities, which are being relocated from D.C. Sabin Vaccine, a Connecticut-based bio-concern, is moving its headquarters to Loudoun. And finally, neighboring Fairfax County, which led all counties in the South in job creation during the dot-com boom, is about to open its new BioAccelerator incubator.

Ernst & Young Report

The 2003 report on biotechnology produced by Ernst & Young LLP shows that some Southern states are North American leaders in the industry. The study, which maintains that the biotech industry is just now emerging, named 16 areas in North America where biotech is growing. Included in those areas were Southern states' North Carolina, Georgia, Maryland, Texas and Florida.

Oklahoma City Lures Testing Facility

Cytovance Biologics is investing $2 million in new equipment and $12 million in total for a 26,000-square-foot drug testing plant in Oklahoma City. The facility will provide phase-two testing for drugs designed to treat cancer, heart disease and diabetes. The company expects to employ up to 60 workers. Cytovance is receiving nearly $12 million in incentives from Oklahoma City and the state of Oklahoma.

UMBI Receives $50 Million

The University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (UMBI) will receive $50 million from the state of Maryland to expand its Rockville research campus. UMBI's president, Jennie Hunter-Cevera, said that the Institute has sought the funding from the state for over 10 years. Included in the expansion is a 140,000-square-foot building at the Center for Advanced Research in Biotechnology. The new facility, which will be used for training and include lab space, will house 250 new workers.

Life Sciences Research Trust Fund Set Up in Missouri

Missouri Gov. Bob Holden signed a bill this summer creating the Life Sciences Research Trust Fund. The fund will get a boost starting in 2007 when 25 percent of the state's future tobacco settlement proceeds are poured into the program each year. Officials estimate the trust fund will receive around $37 million a year.