Novo Nordisk's new manufacturing facility in Clayton, North Carolina.
Courtesy: Novo Nordisk
Novo Nordisk It said Monday it would spend $4.1 billion to build a new manufacturing plant in Clayton, North Carolina, in an effort to boost supply of its blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, diabetes treatment Ozempic and other injectable treatments.
Demand for Wegovy and Ozempic has outstripped supply over the past year, leading to intermittent shortages in the U.S. and forcing the Danish drugmaker to invest heavily to increase its manufacturing footprint. The company said it plans to invest $6.8 billion in production this year, up from about $4 billion last year.
The new manufacturing facility will be responsible for filling and packaging syringes and injection pens for medications, according to a company statement.
“This investment really gives us the opportunity to serve more patients,” Doug Langa, president of Novo Nordisk's North American operations, said in an interview. “Most importantly, I think the other key message here is increased investment in the United States, so I think we're very proud of that.”
Construction of the 1.4 million square foot facility has begun and is expected to be completed between 2027 and 2029, Novo Nordisk said. The company said 1,000 workers will work at the site, in addition to the 2,500 employees already working at its three plants in North Carolina.
This includes two sites already operating in Clayton – one responsible for the packaging and finishing work and the other dedicated to producing the active ingredient in the company's diabetes pill Rybelsus. The company also has a site in Durham, North Carolina, responsible for manufacturing and packaging of oral medications and another facility in West Lebanon, New Hampshire.
There are 12 other production sites in Denmark, France, China, Japan, Algeria, Brazil, Iran and Russia, according to a Novo Nordisk spokesperson.
Three lower doses of Wegovy are currently in short supply in the United States due to high demand, according to an FDA database. Patients start using Wegovy at lower doses and then gradually increase the amount every four weeks until they reach the target dose.
Wegovy and Ozempic are part of a class of drugs called GLP-1s that mimic hormones produced in the intestines to suppress a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar.
An average of about 35,000 U.S. patients start using Wegovy each week today, up from about 27,000 patients in May, a Novo Nordisk spokesperson said in a statement. However, Langa said the company is “very purposeful” about the number of lower doses it releases into the US market to ensure that patients who have already started taking Wegovy can continue treatment at higher doses.
Rival drug maker Eli Lilly It has also allocated billions of dollars to increase manufacturing capacity for popular GLP-1 weight loss and diabetes drugs, such as Zepbound and Mounjaro. The company likewise has several production plants in North Carolina.
Correction: Novo Nordisk's existing facilities in Clayton, North Carolina, are responsible for filling, finishing, and production of the active ingredient in the company's diabetes pill, Rybelsus. An earlier version of this story misstated those jobs.
