Cell and gene therapy company Oxford Biomedica has announced a near £17m investment which will see it issue new shares to the London Stock Exchange.

The firm will issue more than 5.2 million shares, comprising 4.9 per cent of its enlarged share capital, to facilitate a £16.9m investment by Institut Mérieux’s subsidiary TSGH SAS.

Post-admission, Institut Merieux will hold a 10.9 per cent stake in the company, becoming a major shareholder in a move Oxford Biomedica said “further underpinned” its “conviction in OXB’s strategy”.

The moves comes after Oxford Biomedica reached a deal with Institut Mérieux to acquire ABL Europe in exchange for a 3.3 per cent stake in the London-listed company as part of its plans to ramp up production.

The company said the acquisition of ABL Europe would help it meet increased client demand and broaden its international presence by creating a “footprint” in the European Union through sites in Lyon and Strasbourg.

Oxford Biomedica, which helped produce the Oxford-Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccine, hailed its most recent results for the year ended December 31, 2023, a success, despite the loss of revenues from Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing.

Excluding vaccines, the firm saw growth exceed 50 per cent in both its orders and pipeline, along with a small increase in its core business revenues.

Speaking in April, CEO Dr Frank Mathias said: “2023 was a year of transformation for Oxford Biomedica.

“We’re building our position as a global pure-play cell and gene therapy contract development manufacturing company.

“Through our ‘One OXB’ strategy, we’re unifying our operations in the UK, US and the EU, including our newly acquired sites in France.

“I’m delighted with the positive outcomes of our strategy, which have already resulted in a substantial increase in contracted client orders and our business development pipeline.

“Despite challenging market conditions, we continue to see strong demand for our services.

“Our focus in 2024 remains on growing our global portfolio of clients and projects across all stages of clinical development whilst completing the integration of our sites.”