Denton | May 2026

Development

BY GABBY BAILEY

Novartis breaks ground on new $280M Denton facility

Pharmaceutical company Novartis broke ground on its new $280 million targeted radiation therapy manufacturing plant May 7 in Denton. What’s happening? Denton Mayor Gerard Hudspeth joined Novartis leaders for the celebration. Other officials include Jeffrey Kessler, U.S. undersecretary of commerce for industry and security; Swiss Ambassador to the U.S. Ralf Heckner; Texas state Sen. Brent Hagen- buch; Texas state Rep. Andy Hopper; and former Dallas Cowboys player Emmitt Smith. The Novartis plant is the first radioligand therapy, or RLT, manufacturing facility in Texas, according to previous reporting. The pharma- ceutical organization will produce drugs for RLT, which is a type of targeted radiation used to treat advanced forms of cancer. Novartis U.S. President Victor Bultó said the partnerships with the city and higher education institutions like the University of North Texas

and Texas Woman’s University made the Denton launch possible. “This will serve patients across the United States,” Bultó said. “This site represents a long- term commitment to operational excellence ... and to the people who will depend on the treatment made here to improve and extend their lives.” Zooming out The Denton plant is expected to become opera- tional in 2028 and will support jobs in bioengineer- ing, advanced manufacturing, quality control and operations, according to Novartis. “We’re especially proud Novartis selected Denton; it was a competitive process,” Hudspeth said. “Novartis is a multimillion dollar investment coming to Denton and moves the needle on our long-term economic vision.” Novartis officials said the Denton facility will help fully produce its key medicines on U.S. soil to reinforce timely delivery to patients.

Novartis in Denton

46,000 -square-foot facility on 20 acres

$280M investment from Novartis

Medicines created on site from start to finish

Patient must receive medication within five days of creation

Will be operational in 2028

SHADY OAKS DR.

SOURCE: NOVARTIS/COMMUNITY IMPACT

DENTON EDITION