Lonza signed a definitive agreement to acquire five US CDMO manufacturing sites and about 1,100 employees from Merck KGaA for a low- to mid-triple-digit millions Swiss francs enterprise valuation. The move expands Lonza’s US footprint from four to nine sites and adds capabilities spanning clinical and commercial development, including bioconjugation, payload-linkers and viral vectors. The acquired network includes operations tied to manufacturing sites in Carlsbad (CA), Madison and Verona (WI), and Indianapolis (IN), plus bioconjugation operations in St. Louis (MO). Merck KGaA’s biopharma services structure also indicates BioReliance Contract Testing Services is excluded from the transaction. For biopharma customers, the acquisition signals additional capacity in key platforms supporting ADCs and cell and gene therapies—areas where demand growth continues to pressure CDMO availability and lead times.