Lafayette Reporter

Two new projects in Iberia Parish will create a biopharmaceutical  corridor with research and drug manufacturing that will impact lives  across the globe.

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Iberia Parish officials  announced the expansion of the University’s New Iberia Research Center  and the construction of the Iberia BioInnovation Accelerator in the  Progress Point Business Park on Tuesday, Aug. 30.

Both projects are the result of a nearly $50 million investment of  state capital outlay funds brought to Acadiana by its legislative  leaders. 

Nearly $25 million will lead to the creation of a Level 3 biosafety  lab at NIRC – the nation’s largest non-human primate center – that will  enable advanced on-site research with infectious diseases. More than $22  million will go toward the development of a BioInnovation Accelerator  drug manufacturing facility at Progress Point. 

A Level 3 biosafety lab at NIRC will have global implications on  infectious diseases. During the COVID-19 pandemic, NIRC played a  critical role in the development of the Pfizer vaccine, the world’s  first widely available coronavirus vaccine and the first to win FDA  approval. 

This life-saving measure, however, was delayed three months because  final testing could not occur at NIRC’s Level 2 facility. “A Level 3  facility at NIRC will eliminate such delays,” said Dr. Joseph Savoie, UL  Lafayette president.

The BioInnovation Accelerator would transform the research and  clinical trial data into real-world pharmaceuticals through  manufacturing. The pharmaceuticals would then be brought to market and  to households, Savoie said.

“In a biopharmaceutical corridor such as the one that will be created  here in Iberia Parish – with the combined power of NIRC and the  BioInnovation Accelerator – you can envision a future in which a drug is  taken from research to testing to manufacturing to the marketplace –  with each step taking place within about 5 miles of each other. 

Savoie added: “A new biopharmaceutical sector in south Louisiana is  not just good for the local economy. It’s good for humanity in every  corner of the world.” 

Preliminary economic impacts include the creation of nearly 550 new  jobs with $10.6 million in annual tax revenues for Iberia Parish. The  total economic output is estimated to be $144.3 million.

“The promise of what these projects can bring to our parish is  something we’ve never seen,” said M. Larry Richard, Iberia Parish  president. “The expansion of NIRC and the BioInnovation Accelerator are  game-changers for our economy and for our people. I’m thrilled these  projects will be in our parish and form the state’s biopharmaceutical  corridor.”

Dr. Ramesh Kolluru, vice president for Research, Innovation, and  Economic Development at UL Lafayette, called the two projects  “transformational for the University, Iberia Parish, the region, and the  state of Louisiana” that “couldn’t have happened without people coming  together for the greater good of where we live and also for the greater  good of the lives that will be impacted.”

Kolluru said the University and Iberia Parish leaders first  introduced the idea for the biopharmaceutical corridor – with the NIRC  expansion and the construction of the BioInnovation Accelerator as its  nucleus – about a year ago to the Acadiana Legislative Delegation and  area economic development agencies.

“Members of the Acadiana Delegation recognized the significance of  these projects on Iberia Parish and beyond when it was introduced,” said  Page Cortez, State Senate president. “This new biopharmaceutical sector  will bring economic development to the region but it will do so much  more than that. The research that will be conducted here will result in  life-saving pharmaceuticals.”

Louisiana Economic Development Undersecretary Anne Villa said the  projects "add to the state’s extraordinary momentum in enhancing life  sciences business investment and diversifying the sectors creating new  jobs and economic activity in the Acadiana region."

“Diversification is the key to economic competitiveness in the future  economy. The Acadiana region has positioned itself for success by  continuing to support traditional energy and aviation businesses while  targeting growth opportunities in the bioscience and tech sectors.  Tonight’s announcements add to that trend of innovation and  diversification. We look forward to continuing to work with higher  education partners, our local and regional economic development partners  and stakeholders to support and accelerate those efforts,” Villa said.

Both projects are expected to be completed in the next two years.

Original source can be found here.