Lilly to invest more than $1 billion in major expansion of Mounjaro production lines

Eli Lilly is partnering with a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) to invest more than 1 trillion won in large-scale production facilities to meet explosive demand for the obesity and diabetes treatments Mounjaro and Zepbound.

According to Fierce Pharma, a U.S. biotechnology news outlet, on the 30th local time, Lilly and Resilience have agreed to invest $750 million (approximately 1.125 trillion won) to expand Resilience’s Ohio plant in the United States.

The investment will focus on expanding production of Lilly’s KwikPen pen injectors. The expansion is expected to create at least 400 new jobs, with full operations projected to begin in 2027.

The two companies began working together in 2023. Resilience has already produced 150 million doses of Lilly medicines in vial and prefilled syringe formats.

William Mars, CEO of Resilience, said in a statement, “This investment reflects our long-term commitment to building the largest and most advanced sterile injectable and device assembly and packaging facility in the United States.”

Resilience launched in 2020 as a promising startup but later struggled after misjudging trends in the biotechnology and CDMO industries. In June last year, it also carried out a major restructuring, including closing six of its 10 plants.

Meanwhile, demand for Lilly’s injectable obesity and diabetes treatments is expected to grow further. The next-generation triple agonist candidate retatrutide is expected to be approved next year. In clinical trials, the drug reduced body weight by up to 28.3% in patients with obesity.