Novo Nordisk announced plans to invest $4.1 billion in constructing a new manufacturing plant in Clayton, North Carolina. This initiative aims to enhance the supply of its popular weight loss drug Wegovy, diabetes treatment Ozempic, and other injectable therapies. Over the past year, demand for Wegovy and Ozempic has outpaced supply, leading to intermittent shortages in the U.S. In response, the Danish pharmaceutical giant has significantly ramped up its production investments, planning to spend $6.8 billion this year, up from approximately $4 billion last year.
The new facility will be dedicated to filling and packaging syringes and injection pens for these drugs. Doug Langa, Novo Nordisk’s head of North American operations, highlighted the importance of this investment, noting that it would allow the company to serve more patients and further solidify its commitment to U.S. operations.
Construction of the 1.4 million-square-foot plant has already begun and is projected to be completed between 2027 and 2029. The new site will employ 1,000 workers, adding to the 2,500 employees at Novo Nordisk’s three existing North Carolina plants. These include two operational sites in Clayton—one for fill and finish work and another for producing the active ingredient in the diabetes pill Rybelsus. Additionally, Novo Nordisk operates a facility in Durham, North Carolina, for manufacturing and packaging oral drugs, and another site in West Lebanon, New Hampshire. The company also has 12 production sites globally, including locations in Denmark, France, China, Japan, Algeria, Brazil, Iran, and Russia.
Currently, three lower doses of Wegovy are in shortage in the U.S. due to high demand, as indicated by the Food and Drug Administration. Patients typically start Wegovy at lower doses, increasing the dosage every four weeks until reaching the target amount. GLP-1 medications like Wegovy and Ozempic mimic gut hormones to suppress appetite and regulate blood sugar, making them effective for weight loss and diabetes management.
According to a Novo Nordisk spokesperson, around 35,000 U.S. patients begin Wegovy treatment each week, up from approximately 27,000 in May. Despite this, Langa emphasized that the company is carefully managing the release of lower doses to ensure continuous treatment availability for patients already on Wegovy.
Rival pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly is also investing heavily in increasing its manufacturing capacity for GLP-1 medications, including Zepbound and Mounjaro, which are used for weight loss and diabetes. Eli Lilly, like Novo Nordisk, operates several production plants in North Carolina, reflecting the region’s growing importance in pharmaceutical manufacturing.
READ MORE: