Overview
- Celltrion USA signed a purchase agreement for Eli Lilly’s Branchburg, New Jersey facility for 460 billion won, with closing targeted by the end of 2025.
- The company plans at least 1.4 trillion won in total spending, allocating about 700 billion won for acquisition and initial operations and another 700 billion won for expansion.
- Under a CMO agreement, the site will keep producing Lilly medicines as Celltrion validates its own lines, with partial output targeted by late 2026 and broader production into 2027.
- The FDA-approved, cGMP drug-substance facility gives Celltrion a U.S. supply chain from manufacturing to commercialization and, the company says, reduces tariff exposure and costs versus new construction.
- The move follows U.S. policy signals, including President Trump’s threats of tariffs up to 250% on drug imports, as other Korean biopharma firms also secure American production bases.