AstraZeneca on Monday announced plans to invest $50 billion in its US operations by 2030, a sweeping commitment that includes building its largest-ever manufacturing facility in Virginia and expanding research and development across several states.
The move comes as global pharmaceutical firms face mounting pressure to relocate production to the United States amid the prospect of steep trade tariffs under the Trump administration.
The Anglo-Swedish biopharmaceutical company said the investment will bolster US manufacturing and research capabilities, with a particular focus on its weight management and metabolic disease portfolio.
A new multi-billion-dollar facility in Virginia will serve as the cornerstone of the initiative and is set to produce, among other products, its oral GLP-1 obesity drug.
“This will be our largest single manufacturing investment globally,” the company said in a statement, noting that the plant will incorporate artificial intelligence, automation and data analytics to improve efficiency.
AstraZeneca’s US expansion
Beyond the Virginia facility, AstraZeneca’s investment will expand cell therapy manufacturing and R&D operations in Maryland, Massachusetts, California, Indiana and Texas.
The company said the initiative would create “tens of thousands of jobs” as it deepens its presence in the world’s largest pharmaceutical market.
CEO Pascal Soriot said the move reflects the company’s confidence in the US as a global leader in life sciences.
“Today’s announcement underpins our belief in America’s innovation in biopharmaceuticals and our commitment to the millions of patients who need our medicines in America and globally,” Soriot said.
AstraZeneca expects half of that projected revenue to come from the US market.
AstraZeneca, which played a major role in the global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, has steadily increased its US footprint in recent years.
The company reported that the United States accounted for over 40% of its annual revenue in 2024.
In November, it announced a $3.5 billion US investment shortly after the US presidential election.
Earlier this month, The Times reported that AstraZeneca was considering a potential move of its primary listing from London to a US exchange, a shift that analysts described as a blow to the United Kingdom’s public markets.
The company is the most valuable constituent of the FTSE 100 index.
Industry-wide repositioning in response to Trump tariffs
The announcement places AstraZeneca among a growing list of global pharmaceutical companies—including Novartis, Sanofi, Roche, Eli Lilly and Johnson & Johnson—that have pledged to ramp up US investment in recent months.
The moves follow policy signals from US President Donald Trump, who has advocated for reshoring domestic manufacturing and warned the pharmaceutical industry to prepare for aggressive trade measures.
A pending Section 232 investigation into the pharmaceutical sector is expected to conclude by the end of July, with the administration weighing tariffs that could reach as high as 200%.
Trump has proposed a 12- to 18-month grace period to allow pharmaceutical firms to realign their supply chains, though industry leaders have pushed back, citing logistical constraints.
“Typically for most medicines it’s a three to four year horizon,” Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan said on an earnings call last week.
“We’re working very hard to accelerate that as fast as we can and demonstrate we’re making the investments we have planned,” he added.
As the tariff landscape evolves, AstraZeneca’s announcement signals a broader industry shift to mitigate regulatory risk and secure access to the US market, which remains a key growth driver for the sector.
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