The BioAccelerator is a 33,000 sq. ft. multi-user and multi-function facility that supports bio-based businesses working on the innovation continuum from R&D incubation, through upstream and downstream bioprocessing in the Pilot Plant Suites and finally to independent biomanufacturing suites for companies entering the marketplace. The BioAccelerator is the largest single investment in economic development infrastructure in PEI history.

This core capacity is augmented by the expertise and capabilities associated with the National Research Council’s atypical fermentation capacity, along with the biopharma skills and training program delivered by the Canadian Alliance on Skills and Training in Life Sciences (CASTL). This combination brings together inter-related assets and expertise that are both complementary and provide a unique platform to accelerate new product development and economic impact.

This facility is unique in Canada in its design and service delivery components and is an important investment supporting Canada’s Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy.

The BioAccelerator will provide essential biomanufacturing infrastructure to advance the bioscience and life sciences ecosystem regionally and nationally. The BioAccelerator will support the growth of the PEI bioscience cluster, enhance Canadian pandemic preparedness, and advance Atlantic Canada’s position as a national centre of expertise in bio-based product development and biomanufacturing.

This multi-user and multi-functional facility will also support key national priorities requiring biomanufacturing facilities and expertise, including the Ocean Supercluster and Natural Products Canada.

The BioAccelerator will be located in the BioCommons Research Park, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.

The BioAccelerator will be owned by the Charlottetown Area Development Corporation and operated by the PEI BioAlliance.

Tenants in the R&D wet lab suites will typically lease for 2-4 years before requiring their own facilities. The pilot plant suites will be more project-based leases of several months in duration. The manufacturing suite tenants will usually lease for 3-5 years as they scale their businesses and establish their own facilities.

PEI’s bioscience community is recognized nationally and internationally for its collaborative economic cluster model that drives innovation and sector growth. Through the aligned efforts of business, academia, research, and government partners, the sector now includes 66 bioscience companies earning over $600 million annually in sales, making bioscience the second-largest industry in Prince Edward Island. The PEI Bioscience Cluster has surpassed 2025 growth targets and is well on its way to becoming a billion-dollar industry by 2030. Key metrics below demonstrate the rapid growth of the Cluster and its economic impact on the region. The Cluster has had important regional and national impact through initiatives such as the Emergence Bioscience Business Incubator, Natural Products Canada, CASTL, and BIOVECTRA’s new first-in-Canada mRNA Vaccine Manufacturing facility.

Tenants in the BioAccelerator will include early-stage and small and medium-sized enterprises from Atlantic Canada and international locations. The BioAccelerator will host the facilities and expertise of the National Research Council of Canada’s atypical fermentation labs, CASTL’s national headquarters, and an expanded lead training facility. CASTL provides hands-on biopharmaceutical manufacturing training for the talent pipeline essential to Canada’s Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy, including pandemic response.

The term “Centre of Expertise in Biomanufacturing” applies to the whole of the PEI Bioscience Cluster, which includes over 50 companies, supporting academic and research organizations, and infrastructure like the BioAccelerator.

It includes businesses with specialized world-class regulatory-compliant facilities and equipment and expertise to develop and commercialize new technologies that will contribute to solutions for global challenges in human and animal health, food security, and climate change.

The financing is jointly provided by the Government of PEI and the Government of Canada on a 50/50 basis.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $50 Million.

Construction is underway and is expected to be completed in 2027.