Celltrion said on the 17th that it signed a contract manufacturing (CMO) deal with a global pharmaceutical company for a biologics drug substance (Drug Substance). The contract is worth about 294.9 billion won.
The counterparty was not disclosed under a confidentiality clause. The company said the contract value could increase to as much as 375.4 billion won depending on future discussions.
Under the deal, Celltrion will supply the biologics drug substance to the pharmaceutical company for three years from 2027 to 2029.
Earlier, Celltrion signed a CMO contract worth about 678.7 billion won with U.S. drugmaker Eli Lilly and Company. Including this deal, Celltrion's cumulative CMO backlog has surpassed 1 trillion won.
The company said inquiries about contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) collaborations from global pharmaceutical firms have also been increasing recently. In response, it said it is upgrading its CMO business system by strengthening global sales and project management capabilities through its subsidiary Celltrion BioSolutions.
Celltrion is focusing on providing high value-added services that enhance clients' product competitiveness beyond simple contract manufacturing. As a representative example, it cited pursuing a "formulation-change CMO" business that offers to external clients the technology to switch to subcutaneous (SC) formulations accumulated during development of the autoimmune disease treatments "Remsima SC" and "Herzuma SC."
Celltrion currently has production facilities totaling 316,000 liters, including the Incheon Songdo plants 1, 2 and 3 (a total of 250,000 liters) and the Branchburg, New Jersey, plant in the United States (66,000 liters).
The company said it plans to consider additional domestic and overseas capacity expansions, citing expected growth in sales of its own products, including the autoimmune disease treatment Zymfentra, and rising CDMO demand.
A Celltrion official said, "This large CMO contract is further recognition in the global market of the company's manufacturing quality competitiveness and stable supply capacity," adding, "We will actively pursue securing additional capacity, taking into account the expansion of production for our own products, the growth of the CDMO business, and global demand."