Selkirk Pharma plans $30 million manufacturing facility on the West Plains

Selkirk Pharma, a contract manufacturing startup in the pharmaceutical industry, is planning to build a $30 million manufacturing facility on the West Plains.

The company wants to build a 65,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at 9110 W. Granite Ave. in the Pacific Northwest Technology Park, according to an application filed with the city of Spokane.

Selkirk Pharma, which was founded in 2018 by a team of physicians and pharmaceutical leaders, manufactures and packages injectable drug products. The company has an office at 821 W. First Ave. in downtown Spokane.

Selkirk Pharma would use the VarioSys sterile filling system from Bausch and Stroebel to fill and close vials through an automated process using a Skan isolator and Skanfog decontamination technology. The company indicates initial client fills would begin by the end of 2020, according to a company news release.

The West Plains facility would house two additional manufacturing lines. Details are to be announced at a later date, according to the release.

Selkirk Pharma CEO Patrick Haffey declined to provide additional details about the project, including the number of jobs and a construction timeline.

The company is looking to fill positions in engineering, science, manufacturing, information technology and project management, according to its website.

Spokane-based Bernardo|Willis Architects is designing the project.

The manufacturing facility is the latest in a series of developments coming to the West Plains, following Amazon’s announcement to build a 640,000-square-foot fulfillment center, which is scheduled for completion this fall.

Aerospace manufacturer Exotic Metals is building a new manufacturing facility in Airway Heights, and California-based Mullen Technologies announced plans in April to build and lease a 1.3 million-square-foot manufacturing space that is expected to bring more than 860 jobs to the area relating to assembly of the Qiantu K50 electric sports car.

Spokane County Commissioner Al French said there’s a number of companies working through plans right now to find the right deal and location for development in the West Plains.

French, who also sits on the West Plains Public Development Authority board, said Selkirk Pharma, Mullen Technologies and Exotic Metals will bring much needed, high-paying jobs to the area.

“That’s the kind of trend we were hoping to be able to foster, and it seems to be materializing from a number of different standpoints, whether it’s advanced or aerospace manufacturing, or cars, or batteries,” he said. “They are good-paying jobs, and we welcome them to the West Plains.”

Cowles Co. and Arnold Venture Group’s investment involvement with Selkirk Pharma was misstated in a previous article due to an error in an outdated news release. Neither are current investors in the company. This article was updated June 21 to relfect correct information.