Celltrion has announced plans to invest KRW 4 trillion in South Korea and KRW 1.4 trillion in the United States to expand its manufacturing facilities for biosimilars and new drug development. The company aims to mitigate tariff risks by dualizing production channels, with products for the U.S. market manufactured in the U.S. and others in South Korea. Celltrion also revealed plans to develop an oral obesity treatment, stating that "the era of Wegovy will not last long."

● Investment of KRW 5 trillion in plant expansion in Korea and the U.S.

On the 19th, Seo Jung-jin, Chairman of Celltrion Group, held an online press conference and announced that the acquisition of Eli Lilly's plant in Branchburg, New Jersey, will be completed within the year. Celltrion disclosed that upon completion of the acquisition, it will expand by adding six 11,000L bioreactors in two phases, securing a total production capacity of 132,000L. The estimated investment amount is KRW 700 billion, and including plant acquisition and operational costs, a total of KRW 1.4 trillion will be invested in the U.S. production facilities. Chairman Seo stated, "There is demand to produce pharmaceuticals in the U.S. due to tariff issues," and added, "In addition to producing Celltrion's own products, the U.S. plant will also engage in contract manufacturing (CMO) business."

In South Korea, KRW 4 trillion will be invested to expand production facilities. Plans include constructing a new drug substance (DS) plant in Songdo, Incheon, a new drug product (DP) plant in Yesan, Chungnam, and a new pre-filled syringe (PFS) production plant in Ochang, Cheongbuk. Chairman Seo mentioned, "By 2030, the current production capacity in Songdo, Incheon, will be insufficient," and added, "We plan to begin designing an 180,000L capacity plant starting next year."

● Acceleration in next-generation obesity treatment and new drug business

Celltrion plans to accelerate its biosimilar and new drug businesses. Currently, Celltrion has launched 11 biosimilar products and aims to release a total of 41 by 2038.

For new drugs, four antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and multi-antibody new drugs have entered clinical trials this year. Chairman Seo announced during the press conference that the company is also developing an obesity treatment, which has recently gained attention. The currently available obesity treatments, such as Wegovy and Mounjaro, are dual and triple agonists that act on two to three targets, including glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). Chairman Seo stated, "We are developing an oral obesity treatment targeting four targets," and added, "We aim to minimize muscle loss, the biggest side effect of existing obesity treatments."

To achieve this, Celltrion plans to increase its annual research and development (R&D) expenditure from KRW 600 billion to KRW 800 billion next year, with plans to further increase it to KRW 1 trillion in the future.

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