Eli Lilly and Company’s decision to build a $3.5 billion pharmaceutical manufacturing campus in the Lehigh Valley marks a historic moment for the region—representing the largest economic development project ever announced in the Lehigh Valley’s history and the largest life sciences investment in Pennsylvania.
The campus, planned for Upper Macungie Township, was won after a highly competitive site-selection process that included more than 300 regions nationwide, underscoring the Lehigh Valley’s growing reputation as a premier destination for global investment.
Lilly’s investment will create jobs and life-changing medicines while generating far-reaching economic and quality-of-life impacts that will be felt across the region for decades.
Here’s a closer look at the numbers behind Lilly Lehigh Valley.
2,850
The Number
Lilly’s new campus will lead to 850 permanent jobs, ranging from technicians to engineers and scientists, and 2,000 construction jobs.
Details
The project means family sustaining wage jobs. CEO David Ricks said the average salary at Lilly is $100,000.
The project is also expected to create a demand for labor and apprenticeship and training programs.
Impact
The company factored in the region’s strong educational system of 11 colleges and universities. Lehigh Carbon Community College, for example, is establishing a biopharma and advanced manufacturing training program, by upgrading curriculum and facilities with financial help from the state.
What People Are Saying
“This partnership is such a life-changing opportunity for our students. There are opportunities to earn family-sustaining wages. They will have careers they can spend a lifetime at. It’s really changing our community residents’ lives now and future generations.”
- Dr. Ann Bieber, Lehigh Carbon Community College President
$3.5 Billion
The Number
Lilly’s injectable pharmaceutical manufacturing facility will cost to the tune of $3.5 billion. For comparison, the closest investment in the Lehigh Valley was in 2009 when the Sands Casino Resort, now owned by Wind Creek, opened at a price tag of nearly $800 million in Bethlehem.
Details
The facility will produce next-generation weight-loss therapies, including retatrutide, a first-in-class investigational GIP, GLP-1, and glucagon triple hormone receptor agonist.
Part of its commitment to bolster domestic manufacturing, the facility is the fourth new U.S. manufacturing site Lilly has announced in the last year.
Impact
Lilly estimates every dollar of investment generates another $4 of spending in the surrounding community.
The company will support the Lehigh Valley in other ways, too, ranging from apprenticeship opportunities to volunteerism and building relationships with other businesses.
What People Are Saying
“It'll be a beautiful site in the end that will make life-changing products for people around the world and create family changing jobs for the people that work there … suppliers, local community businesses that will thrive because we've increased the activity in this area.”
- David Ricks, Lilly CEO
$100 Million
The Number
Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro announced the project will get $100 million in state support through grants and tax credits.
The awards include $25 million through a PA SITES grant for site development, $25 million Pennsylvania First grant, and $50 million from the PA EDGE program.
Details
Lilly is the first to qualify for the PA EDGE program, which was created in 2022. Gov. Shapiro held up the Lilly project as a success story Feb. 3 during his budget address when he proposed reshaping parts of the program to make it easier to participate. The current part of the program that Lilly is tapping requires at least a $200 million investment and 800 new jobs, a requirement few projects can meet.
Impact
The investment marks a notable win for the state just two years after Shapiro came to the Lehigh Valley to unveil the first statewide comprehensive economic development strategy in two decades. That plan called for reducing red tape to grant permits and approvals sooner; investing in making sites shovel ready; and targeting high-value projects such as Lilly.
Since the state strategy was unveiled, the state attracted $39 billion in private-sector investment and 21,500 jobs. The largest project is Amazon's initial $20 billion proposal to build new AI and cloud computing campuses. Lilly would be the third largest.
What People Are Saying
“We couldn’t even compete for that kind of deal a few years ago — but now we’re winning them. Because we have a plan, we have the resources to back it up, and we are moving with real speed.”
- Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania Governor
(Photos by Eli Lilly and Company and Donna Fisher Photography)