Northway Biotech to open $70M cell therapy manufacturing center in Lithuania
Northway Biotech, a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) specializing in protein-based biologics and advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), is finalizing installation of a new cell therapy and personalized medicine center at the Vilnius City Innovation Industrial Park in Vilnius, Lithuania, with operations expected to begin in the third quarter of 2026.
The €61 million ($70 million) facility covers 3,500 square meters and will feature 20 independent cGMP-compliant production lines equipped with integrated quality control laboratories, cleanroom systems, and isolated infrastructure for cell therapy manufacturing, according to the announcement. The center is designed to support simultaneous production of individualized therapies for multiple patients while maintaining sterility and preventing cross-contamination, the company said.
The facility is expected to employ approximately 100 specialists in biotechnology, bioengineering, and molecular biology. The new center is the second building in Northway’s Bio City III development, following a biotechnology logistics center that opened earlier this year at the same site.
The facility is designed to provide contract manufacturing services for university hospitals, biotechnology companies, and pharmaceutical organizations developing cell therapies, including CAR-T treatments. The center will also support personalized therapeutic vaccines and, in a later phase, three-dimensional human tissue models for drug testing and regenerative medicine research, the company said.
A key operational advantage cited by Northway Biotech is the center’s proximity to its existing gene therapy facility in the adjacent Bio City II complex, which the CDMO said will shorten the manufacturing chain from genetic material preparation to final cell therapy production.
The announcement follows the company’s selection in February as the CDMO for cGMP manufacturing of ExpreS2ion Biotechnologies’ Nipah virus vaccine candidate, part of an EU-funded Horizon Europe consortium, with manufacturing activities underway in 2026.