Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Jul 30, 2025

AstraZeneca Cancels £450 Million Vaccine Plant Expansion in Liverpool

AstraZeneca Cancels £450 Million Vaccine Plant Expansion in Liverpool

Company expresses disappointment over inability to secure government support for investment decision.
AstraZeneca's Chief Executive Officer, Pascal Soriot, has articulated his disappointment regarding the pharmaceutical company's decision to abandon a £450 million expansion project at its vaccine plant in Speke, Liverpool.

In statements made to the media on Thursday, Soriot noted that the company was unable to establish a viable business case for the investment, despite previous agreements with the government under the prior Conservative administration which included commitments of £90 million in grants and various forms of aid.

Soriot explained, "This is one of those cases...

where we could not make the business case work...

we needed a certain level of support to make this economically viable.

And that was not possible for the government to justify, which we totally understand.

On our side, we cannot justify this either.

We were all very disappointed, but that’s business life."

The decline of the project has stirred reactions from government officials.

Chris Bryant, the Science Minister, remarked that the difference in government offer and AstraZeneca's expectations was "remarkably small," labeling the company's decision as "deeply disappointing."

On the matter of funding, Soriot confirmed that the company initially aimed to increase its investment in the Speke facility to over £500 million.

He rejected suggestions of tension between AstraZeneca and the UK government, emphasizing the competitive nature of the pharmaceutical industry.

He pointed to the substantial support received from Singapore, where AstraZeneca is in the process of building a $1.5 billion site for antibody drug conjugates.

Additionally, Soriot urged UK officials to enhance efforts to draw in further investment, suggesting that changes to the drug rebate scheme — which requires pharmaceutical companies to return a percentage of their sales to the National Health Service — would not favor such investment initiatives.

In a separate context, AstraZeneca has reported a 21% rise in annual revenues to $54.1 billion in 2024, with pre-tax profits increasing by 38% to $8.7 billion on a constant currency basis.

This financial performance coincided with a rise in the company's shares by 5.7%, helping to lift the FTSE 100 index past 8,700 points to a new intraday high.

Moreover, AstraZeneca has provided insight into an ongoing investigation in China, where Leon Wang, president of the company’s operations there, along with other executives, has been detained due to allegations of illegally importing cancer medications.

The company disclosed that this case involves suspected unpaid importation taxes of $900,000, potentially leading to fines that could be fivefold the original amount if liability is established.

Soriot remarked on his wish for the detained executives and confirmed the appointment of Iskra Reic as Wang’s replacement.

Additionally, AstraZeneca faces scrutiny over an independent investigation related to medical insurance fraud in China.

In terms of its product portfolio, AstraZeneca's sales in cancer and respiratory medicine grew significantly, with revenues increasing by 24% and 25%, respectively, in the past year.

However, the company has projected a slowdown in overall sales growth for the upcoming fiscal year to a high single-digit percentage and reiterated its longer-term revenue goal of $80 billion by 2031, with expectations for late-stage results from seven new medicines this year.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
×