Novo’s latest investment comes just days after the U.S. FTC greenlit the highly contentious acquisition of Catalent, which analysts expect will help the pharma expand its production capacity.
For the first time this century, Novo Nordisk is breaking new ground in its home country, Denmark, with a new 8.5 billion kroner (approximately $1.2 billion) production facility dedicated to rare disease therapies, the pharma announced on Monday.
The new facility and associated warehouse will span more than 40,000 square meters and add 400 permanent jobs once operational. Construction, which will create up to 1,000 external employment opportunities, has already begun and is expected to wrap up in 2027.
According to the pharma’s announcement, the new production plant is designed to be “modular and flexible” and will be able to “accommodate multiple product types” within Novo’s rare disease business, including its hemophilia pipeline, which is anchored by concizumab.
The investigational antibody, being proposed for the prophylactic treatment of hemophilia A and B, works by targeting the tissue factor pathway inhibitor protein, a key component of coagulation, thus helping to restore the body’s ability to stop bleeding. The FDA turned down concizumab’s drug application in December 2023, citing the need for more information regarding the drug’s manufacturing process and Novo’s mechanism for monitoring and ensuring the appropriate dosing of concizumab.
Novo’s hemophilia pipeline also includes the Phase I Inno8 and the Phase III Mim8.
Monday’s investment comes just days after the pharma’s sister company Novo Holdings won the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s blessing for its controversial $16.5 billion acquisition of contract manufacturer Catalent. Earlier this month, the European Commission also greenlit the deal, noting that it would pose no considerable competitive threat in the European Economic Area.
As part of the transaction, which the companies expect to close in the coming days, Novo Holdings will sell three of Catalent’s fill-finish sites to its pharma sister for $11 billion upfront—a move that analysts believe could substantially boost Novo’s supply.
Aside from the Catalent deal, Novo in recent months has made several other investments to beef up its manufacturing capacity, primarily to stabilize the supply of its blockbuster weight-loss therapy semaglutide. In November 2023, the pharma announced that it will spend $6 billion to expand its existing manufacturing footprint in Denmark.
This year, Novo has additionally earmarked $556 million for a sterile preparations expansion project in China and dropped $4.1 billion to construct its second fill-and-finish site in North Carolina. Earlier this month, the pharma topped up its Denmark investments with a $410 million tranche for a new quality control laboratory and shelled out $200 million to buy a production plant from Novavax.
