Stellar Biotechnologies initiated the second phase of an expansion project at the Port of Hueneme, north of Los Angeles, California.
The construction project will allow the company to expand production of a medical-grade protein, called KLH, which Stellar produces in aquaculture from a marine mollusk. The plan includes 10,000 square feet of renovated Pacific ocean-front space for aquaculture production and related activities as well as new protective structures and aesthetic improvements. The company currently maintains an animal population to produce KLH to support multiple pre-commercial clinical trials. Once key infrastructure is in place, the company plans to incrementally add to its production capacity, including the installation of more aquaculture tanks. The planned upgrades will allow a multifold expansion of the company's current site capacity.
The first phase of Stellar's expansion project, which was completed in 2016, included improvements to the company's extraction and manufacturing suites, expanded hatchery space and the temporary relocation of its aquaculture production tanks to allow the permitting and development of its water-front site. The company currently leases 37,000 square feet of oceanfront property at the Port.
Stellar President and Chief Executive Officer Frank Oakes said that the company plans to incrementally increase production capacity in line with customers' clinical milestones and market opportunities for KLH.
"We are preparing our infrastructure to support pharmaceutical industry standards for commercial drugs, including purity, controls and traceability," Oakes said. "By staging these investments, we can prepare the business for growth while minimizing upfront costs."
Stellar Biotechnologies has operated since 1999 at the aquaculture business park, where it pioneered complex methods for the culture of the source animal, the Giant Keyhole Limpet, a previously undomesticated mollusk that is native to the California coastline. Today, Stellar supports limpets from embryo to protein-producing adult, and has multiple generations grown entirely within its land-based aquaculture facility. It is the only known facility that has accomplished this.