PFIZER EXEC NAMED NEW SITE HEAD AT LONZA’S PEASE COMPLEX

There’s a new boss, as well as other changes at the top of the org chart, at Lonza Biologics as the Portsmouth pharmaceuticals manufacturer enters a new phase of growth and expansion.

The new boss, called a site head, is Anthony “Tony” Mulcahy, who as of his hiring in October became responsible for the overall leadership of the sprawling manufacturing facility at the Pease International Tradeport.

Mulcahy came to Lonza by way of Pfizer, for which he was the site leader of the Pfizer Global Supply operation in Sanford, N.C., since 2018. In North Carolina, Mulcahy oversaw vaccine and gene therapy manufacturing at a plant with more than 1,000 employees.

Lonza is a contract manufacturer of the biologics that go into treatments and therapies developed by pharmaceutical companies and approved by the federal government. The primary component of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine is produced at the Lonza plant in Portsmouth.

Lonza, which set up its first plant in the tradeport in 1996, one of the earliest tenants at Pease. The company occupied about 50,000 square feet and had fewer than 100 employees there. Today, Lonza occupies almost 680,000 square feet and employs some 1,300 people. Future expansion calls for another 1 million square feet and an additional 1,000 or so employees.

In addition, Mark Caswell, who had been the interim site head before Mulcahy’s arrival, was named head of operations, and the new head of engineering and facilities is John Maravich.

Caswell’s new job and title has the added distinction of being in charge of what the company is calling the “2k asset.” According to information supplied by the company, this is a growth initiative that is taking place at both the Portsmouth facility and the Visp plant in Switzerland, where Lonza is headquartered in Basel.

The company describes the Portsmouth expansion as “a new next-generation facility supporting late-phase clinical and commercial development and manufacturing.”

ENGLISH SOCCER CLUB REJECTS BINNIE FAMILY PURCHASE OFFER

Officials of a Championship League soccer club in England have turned down an offer from the Binnie family — which is headed by New Hampshire investor and developer Bill Binnie — after determining their latest bid of nearly $40 million was too low.

The BBC reported that the Binnies submitted their latest offer on March 7 to acquire the club, Derby County. The offer was for the club as well as the stadium where it plays, Pride Park in Derbyshire, which is currently owned by Mel Morris, former owner of the club. Officials quickly turned down the offer and have ended discussions with the family, the BBC reported.

According to the BBC, the Binnies felt their offer reflected the reduced status of Derby, a former Premier League team that has had a rocky several past years, culminating in the failure to pay creditors on time, which could mean the team will receive a 15-point deduction — a move that could drop them from the second-tier Championship League to the thirdtier League One. The team was relegated from the top-tier Premier League in May 2021.

The club — currently third from bottom in its league — would also face a loss of about $6 million in payments tied to broadcasting rights if they are relegated.

Adam Binnie told the BBC, the family increased its offer from a previous $37.6 million.

The current owner of the club, Quantuma, is said to be looking for an offer of about $66 million, which includes about $26 million for the stadium.