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Roche is investing 790 million Swiss francs in new active ingredient production

Roche is significantly expanding its Basel production site for synthetic active ingredients. The pharmaceutical group is investing around 790 million Swiss francs in a new Synthetic Molecules Facility. The project involves the construction of a new building (Building 51) and the modernisation of Building 50, and is due to be completed by the end of 2030. Around 200 employees are expected to work there in future.

21/09/2026

The facility combines new production technologies with digitally networked infrastructure and artificial intelligence. This is driven by the growing importance of complex synthetic active ingredients, which already account for around half of Roche’s pharmaceutical portfolio. The new infrastructure is primarily intended to accelerate the scaling up of such molecules from development through to commercial production. For Switzerland as a pharmaceutical hub, the project forms part of a broader investment strategy. According to Roche, the company has invested around 41 billion Swiss francs in research, development and infrastructure in the country since 2016. Around 1.4 billion Swiss francs are currently earmarked for ongoing construction projects in Basel and Kaiseraugst alone.

For the industry, this investment demonstrates that production expertise in complex synthetic active ingredients remains strategically relevant alongside biologics and new therapeutic platforms. Digitalisation and automated process control are increasingly becoming part of industrial pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Press release from “Roche Pharma (Switzerland) AG” dated 21 September 2026

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