VolitionRx opened its new R&D facility. The new building will enable the company to increase capacity to carry out clinical trials and to expand its scientific team, thereby expediting the large number of trials underway. The new custom-designed facility comprises 9,000 square feet of office space and 10,000 square feet of high quality, purpose-built laboratory space. The facility is located in the Crealys Science Park, Isnes in the Wallonia region of Belgium, an area popular with other biotech and pharmaceutical companies.
"Our capacity to run large clinical trials has increased significantly with this five-fold increase in laboratory space. This will facilitate large scale manual and automated robotic testing. We will now have the ability to work on several large trials at the same time, namely: the frontline screening colorectal cancer tests and lung, prostate and pancreatic cancer," commented Dr. Marielle Herzog, R&D director of Volition.
"We are delighted to have moved into our new R&D facility as we have outgrown our previous premises. This exciting upgrade allows us to accelerate our clinical trials and expedite the commercialization of our products" said Dr. Gaetan Michel, CEO of Belgian Volition. "I would like to thank Namur Invest, Walloon Export and Foreign Investment Agency (AWEX), the Walloon Region Government and in particular, the Trade Minister, Monsieur Jean-Claude Marcourt, for all of their support in helping make this facility very affordable. With the support and efforts of our contractors AD&C Group, we opened the facility on time and within budget."
Belgian Volition acquired the 19,000 square foot property for EUR 1.2 million, of which EUR 1.12 million was financed pursuant to a Real Estate Capital Lease Agreement with ING Asset Finance Belgium S.A. As part of the transaction, Belgian Volition granted ING a right of emphyteusis (a form of leasehold) on the property and ING granted Belgian Volition a 15-year lease over the property with an option for Belgian Volition to purchase the property outright at the end of the lease upon payment of EUR 33,600. The investment was further supported with the financial backing of Preface S.A./Namur Invest.
