AbbVie Launches $1.4B North Carolina Manufacturing Campus

Biopharmaceutical company AbbVie will invest $1.4 billion over the next four years to build a 185-acre manufacturing campus in Durham, N.C., near Research Triangle Park. Construction is slated to begin later this year.

At full buildout, scheduled for 2028, the company will use AI to support its immunology, neuroscience and oncology medication production.

The first phase will include small volume parenteral drug production manufacturing facilities, laboratories, a warehouse, offices and employee wellness facilities.

---

READ ALSO: Life Science Sector Faces Vacancy Glut After Construction Boom

---

AbbVie’s Durham Campus is expected to create an additional 734 new jobs, along with more than 2,000 construction jobs during development. This facility represents AbbVie’s first in North Carolina and is the largest investment capital commitment the company has made to a single project.  

AbbVie’s $100 billion plan

The project is part of the company’s broader plan to invest $100 billion in U.S. research and development and manufacturing over the next decade. In February, AbbVie earmarked $380 million for its Chicago headquarters, aiming to expand it with two new facilities that will support production of neuroscience and obesity medications.

In September 2025, AbbVie began construction on a separate expansion project in Worcester, Mass. The company invested $70 million in its AbbVie Bioresearch Center for biologics R&D and manufacturing. The expansion includes additional manufacturing areas and a three-story building housing laboratory, warehouse and office space.

Life science construction slows nationally

AbbVie’s life science expansion comes at a time when deliveries across the sector are slowing. Completions fell from the 13.9 million square feet in 2024, to 11.2 million square feet in 2025, according to a Yardi Matrix report. As of February 2026, 11.3 million square feet was under construction, but investor sentiment improved in 2025 with $1.7 billion in sales, up from $600 million in 2024.

Despite the broader slowdown, major pharmaceutical companies are still advancing large-scale projects in the Research Triangle area. Last August, Genentech began a $700 million ground-up development on a 700,000-square-foot facility in Holly Springs, N.C. The firm will commit $50 billion in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics across the U.S. over the next five years.