As demand soars for Eli Lilly's diabetes and obesity newcomers Mounjaro and Zepbound, the company has spent the past year pouring billions into its manufacturing operations.
Now, the company is taking its manufacturing push to Germany.
Friday, the company revealed plans to build a large plant in Alzey, Germany. The investment is expected to reach $2.5 billion, and the site is slated to employ up to 1,000 people, Lilly said in a release.
The site will grow Lilly's manufacturing network for injectables and support the company's efforts to meet demand for several drugs, including those in its diabetes and obesity portfolio, the company said.
Lilly said it plans to utilize automation and install high-speed manufacturing lines at the site, which will boost the company's ability to supply incretins for its diabetes and obesity offerings.
Construction on the site is set to begin next year, and the plant is expected to commence operations in 2027.
The Friday announcement comes amid an aggressive manufacturing expansion for the drugmaker.
So far, the drugmaker has committed $1.7 billion to its Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, facility, including a $450 million expansion to help meet demand for Mounjaro.
In March, Lilly confirmed plans to pour more than $500 million into an active pharmaceutical ingredient plant in Ireland. That move brought the company’s total investment in the site, which was initially expected to employ a workforce of 300, to 927 million euros ($1 billion).
The company’s largest investment came a month later. In April, Lilly made a $1.6 billion commitment to its two new manufacturing sites in Indiana’s LEAP Innovation Park in Boone County.
The expansion brought Lilly’s total funding at the site to $3.7 billion, breaking a company record for manufacturing investment at a single location. Those facilities will expand capacity for active pharmaceutical ingredients and next-generation therapies.
In all, Lilly says it has made investment commitments of more than $11 billion over the last three years.
All of this comes as Lilly rides a wave of demand for its new GIP/GLP-1 compound tirzepatide, which is now approved to treat diabetes and obesity. Along with Novo Nordisk's rival semaglutide, the drugs are expected to deliver many billions in sales in the coming years.