Biogen to invest 1 billion Swiss francs for new Swiss biopharma plant

US biotech giant Biogen (Nasdaq: BIIB) says it is investing 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.07 billion) in Luterbach in the Swiss canton of Solothurn in a new production plant.

Work would begin on the plant at the end of this year with completion set for the end of 2018. By 2019 the plant should be operational, creating 400 jobs and producing biopharmaceutical medicine, Biogen said at a press conference. The plant would be the fifth for the company in the world.

Biogen is one of the world's oldest biotechnology companies and was founded in 1978 in Geneva, Switzerland. The company researches, develops and markets innovative therapies. Biogen employs more than 7,500 people in 30 countries. In the Greater Zurich Area, Biogen has been present for more than 10 years when, in 2003, the third largest biotech company was created by the merger of Biogen and Idec Pharmaceuticals to become Biogen Idec. Since 2004, the head office of Biogen International has been located in the canton of Zug. In Switzerland, the company currently employs around 300 people.