Dive Brief:

• Virginia will award $66.7 million in grants to fund four biotech, life sciences and pharmaceutical manufacturing projects, and a pharmaceutical manufacturing cluster, according to a Feb. 14 press release.
• The projects aim to bring new jobs to the state as it looks to become a leader in biomanufacturing, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in the release. "Each of these projects will bring jobs and opportunity across the Commonwealth and further our position as a national leader in these business sectors,” he said in a statement.
• The grants are part of Gov. Youngkin’s economic development plan, “Compete to Win,” which focuses on improving the state’s competitve advantage in key sectors, such as manufacturing.

Dive Insight:

Virginia is pushing to grow multiple manufacturing sectors as part of the “Compete to Win” plan, a strategy to attract production companies and increase the state’s workforce. 

"In order to make Virginia a leader in biotechnology, life sciences and pharmaceutical manufacturing, we have to accelerate our growth and create a best-in-class business environment for this industry," Youngkin said in a statement. 

As part of that push, last fall the state opened the Center for Manufacturing Advancement, meant to promote collaboration among technology leaders and provide working space for industry partners. 

Virginia’s life sciences industry comprises 300 companies and has nearly 5 million-square-feet of laboratory space, according to the press release. The industry employs roughly 15,000 workers.