Novo Nordisk Taps Ireland for Weight Loss Production Boost

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Buoyed by the runaway success of its diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, Denmark's Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) (Bagsværd, Denmark) has plans to build a major manufacturing operation at its Grange Castle campus in Dublin, Ireland.

Reports indicate that the company is looking to invest more than US$2 billion to construct up to 1.6 million square feet of new facilities and employ up to 1,100 people. It would comprise up to three filling and packaging manufacturing facilities, a warehouse building, two assembly and packaging facilities, an administration building and a laboratory. According to the planning application seen by The Sunday Times newspaper, it will take between 18 and 24 months to complete construction and the facility should be fully operational by 2026--assuming planning permission is granted. The company refused to elaborate on its plans but confirmed that an application had been made: "Novo Nordisk is looking into expanding its manufacturing capacity in Europe, and Ireland is one of the locations we are considering."

In June last year, the firm bought 85 acres of land from South Dublin County Council near Grange Castle, and local news and councilors reported that the space would be used to construct a plant for diabetes, rare diseases and obesity products. There is also an option for the firm to acquire a further 21 acres. Last month, Industrial Info reported that the company had made a deal with Dublin-based Alkermes plc to buy its manufacturing facility in Athlone, in the center of Ireland. A one-time cash payment of $92.5 million sealed the deal, and more than 400 staff will transfer to Novo Nordisk on completion of the deal in mid-2024. At the time, a spokesperson for the company said: "The acquisition of the Athlone facility represents an expansion of Novo Nordisk's global manufacturing setup and will provide Novo Nordisk with additional development and manufacturing capacity for current and future oral products."

Last year, Novo Nordisk saw itself become Europe's most valuable firm on the success of its diabetes and weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy. In September the company had a stock market valuation of US$428 billion. Wegovy--popularly dubbed the "skinny jab" by Hollywood celebrities--has seen record sales and shortages worldwide over the past year. As a result, Novo Nordisk has ramped up its manufacturing investment in Denmark, France, and now Ireland. The company revealed a US$2.3 billion investment to boost production at its site in Chartres, France, in 2023 to add aseptic production and finished production processes, as well as an extension of the site's current laboratory for quality control. It will add 500 more jobs to the current workforce of 2,000. Construction has begun and will be completed between 2026 and 2028, the company said. Industrial Info is also tracking a US$6 billion investment to greatly expand its manufacturing capacity at Kalundborg in Denmark.

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