A Japanese biotech company is expanding to Montgomery County, headquartering its first overseas subsidiary in Bethesda to take advantage of the area’s robust life sciences resources.
Nobelpharma is opening an office with 11 employees at 4520 East West Highway, the Tokyo company announced Tuesday. It hopes to bring nine additional employees there before the end of 2020, and has signed a three-year lease for 5,350 square feet in the building.
Nobelpharma develops drugs and medical devices for diseases with relatively small numbers of patients, including tuberous sclerosis complex, which is a genetic disorder that results in benign tumors on vital organs, and adductor spasmodic dysphonia, a vocal disorder that causes the vocal cords to stiffen. Since its founding in 2003, the company has received approvals for 10 “orphan” drugs and devices — meaning they treat conditions so rare that they would not be possible to produce without government assistance — as well as 16 other drugs.
The company has only received one such “orphan” designation in the U.S. so far, according to its website, and recently submitted another application for such an approval. Nobelpharma hopes to massively expand its American presence, President and CEO Yoshiki Kida said in a statement, and expects a closer location to major government agencies such as the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration will help in that effort.
“Access to the country’s leading researchers, regulators and advocates is a key element of our success strategy, and we are glad to make Montgomery County, Maryland, our new U.S. home,” Kida said.
The Montgomery County Economic Development Corp. said it worked with state officials to assist Nobelpharma in finding its new home. A MCEDC spokeswoman said the county provided a $42,800 grant to incentivize the move.
During the pandemic, the biotech sector has proven to be one industry still interested in occupying new space in the county. Officials have said previously they’ve still seen substantial interest from life sciences firms looking to expand or relocate, particularly those that have scored contracts for drugs treating Covid-19.
Montgomery County has long proven to be a hub for such companies, including those with more of an international focus. Just last year, the county successfully lured London-based Autolus Therapeutics to Rockville.
“International companies have the added benefit of locating in one of the country’s most diverse regions, with rich cultural opportunities and 150 languages spoken in our local public schools,” MCEDC President and CEO Benjamin Wu wrote in a statement.
Nobelpharma employs 336 people worldwide and recorded nearly $14.2 million in net profits last year, according to the company’s financial statements.
Related: Read our recent cover story on the road to economic development recovery for Montgomery County.
