Pharma giant to strengthen manufacturing capabilities in Japan and add capacity in China for its first oral GLP-1 therapy candidate, orforglipron.
Eli Lilly Japan is investing an additional $125.5 million (20 billion yen) in its Seishin manufacturing facility in Kobe, Japan, to further strengthen its pharmaceutical supply capacity.
The news, confirmed by the firm’s President and CEO, Simone Thomsen, involves adding a new warehouse and production lines to the site over the next two years.
Lilly also plans to optimise digitalisation and process automation capabilities at the Seishin plant, of which $43 million (7 billion yen) was invested between 2022 and 2025. This earlier cash injection financed automated device sorting machines, a new packaging line and building, and also improved the facility’s quality testing laboratory.
Separately, Lily is also allocating $3 billion over the next ten years to expand its supply chain capacity in China.
we will continue to expand the existing incretin injection production capacity at our Suzhou plant while adding oral solid dosage form production capacity in Beijing, promoting the localisation of manufacturing and supply of key innovations”
Announced on WeChat, the move is set to boost production and supply for oral solid dosage forms, chiefly for Lilly’s first oral small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist candidate, orforglipron.
The company’s Vice President and General Manager of China, De Helan, stated: “Building on the solid capabilities accumulated over the years at our Suzhou plant and our deep collaboration with Jiangsu province, we will continue to expand the existing incretin injection production capacity at our Suzhou plant while adding oral solid dosage form production capacity in Beijing, promoting the localisation of manufacturing and supply of key innovations.”
Of the $3 billion, Lilly is placing $200 million into a collaboration with Pharmaron, which is intended to support the company’s technological capabilities going forwards.
To date, Lilly has directed a total of nearly $6 billion into its Chinese innovation and manufacturing operations.
AstraZeneca is also investing in its Chinese manufacturing operations over the next ten years. A total of $15 billion is being set aside for this venture, supporting the firm’s 2030 revenue objective of $80 billion.
Lilly’s present decade-long commitment in China follows four new US manufacturing investments. Mostly recently confirmed was a new site in Pennsylvania, with the Alabama site set to produce orforglipron.
