Novartis will invest $23bn in US-based manufacturing and research and development (R&D) over the next five years, becoming the latest pharmaceutical company to shift operations to the US in response to potential tariffs.
The Swiss drugmaker said it plans to establish a biomedical research hub in San Diego—its second in the country. Novartis will also construct four new manufacturing facilities in yet-to-be-announced states – three focused on biologics and one on chemical drug substances.
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Following the firm’s $1.75bn acquisition of radiopharmaceuticals company Mariana Oncology and the $745m deal with Ratio Therapeutics, Novartis is also expanding its radioligand therapy capabilities in the US with new sites in Florida and Texas.
This investment is part of a broader trend among pharmaceutical companies exploring options to reshore operations to the US as President Donald Trump announced wide-ranging tariffs on imported products. Although finished drug products are exempt from the recently announced 10% blanket tariff, on 8 April, Trump said this “major” tariff on pharmaceutical imports will be announced soon.
The Novartis investment marks the first major US expansion by a European pharma company following the tariff warnings. American-headquartered firms like Eli Lilly, and Johnson & Johnson (J&J), have already announced their own plans to increase US-based production. Eli Lilly disclosed a $27bn investment in February 2025, while J&J said in March 2025 that it would spend more than $55m on new facilities.
MSD recently opened a $1bn manufacturing facility in North Carolina to increase production of its blockbuster HPV vaccine, Gardasil. The company described the investment as part of a broader $12bn commitment to US capital investment since 2018, with another $8bn expected by 2028.
Novartis said it will be able to “produce 100% of its key medicines end-to-end in the US” following the expansion. The company expects the investment to create around 1,000 direct jobs and an additional 4,000 jobs across its supply chain and surrounding communities.
Earlier this week, the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) called for urgent action to counter what it described as a “risk of exodus” in R&D and manufacturing. In a meeting with European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen, the group said that unless the EU rapidly reforms its regulatory, intellectual property, and investment environment, drugmakers will increasingly shift operations to the US.
In the 10 April announcement, Novartis’ CEO Vas Narasimhan said: “These investments also reflect the pro-innovation policy and regulatory environment in the US that supports our ability to find the next medical breakthroughs for patients.”
