First unveiled in November by economic development body Opportunity North East (ONE), the Bio-therapeutics Hub for Innovation aims to become a focal point for sector ambition and growth.

The development has secured £20m of capital funding from the UK and Scottish governments through the Aberdeen City Region Deal (CRD), a partnership between Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire councils and ONE.

Under the plans, the BioHub would sit to the west of the current campus on a south facing greenfield site bounded by Aberdeenshire Council HQ, providing a mix of offices, laboratories and a café across 69,000sq/ft of accommodation.

Prof Stephen Logan, chair of the life sciences board at Opportunity North East, said: “This is an exciting project for the region and we are now beginning the formal planning approval process for the hub with the local authority. It draws on the significant assets in and around the Foresterhill Health Campus and will realise the opportunity we have to bring forward the next generation of medical therapies and products and grow our company cluster.”

If approved by planners, construction is scheduled to start later this year with a target of opening by 2021.