Merck to Invest $1 Billion in Virginia Facility, Add 100 Jobs

Merck & Company is planning a $1 billion expansion to its manufacturing facility in Elkton, Va. over the course of the next three years that will include the addition of approximately 100 new jobs, the office of the governor of Virginia announced Wednesday. Merck will add 120,000 square feet to its existing 1.1 million-square-foot operation in Elkton in order to increase the production of its Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines. For Merck, the expanded focus on the HPV vaccine comes about a month after the company announced a collaboration with Tessa Therapeutics. The companies will pair Tessa's armored human papillomavirus-specific T cell (HPVST) therapy with Merck’s vaunted checkpoint inhibitor, Keytruda as a potential treatment for patients with recurrent or metastatic HPV 16 and 18-positive cervical cancer.