Danish pharma giant Novo Nordisk has announced it will invest €432 million (approximately $507 million) to upgrade its Irish facility to produce its blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy for markets outside the United States. The company said in a statement that the site, which currently employs 260 workers, will provide a “significant” increase in manufacturing capacity for current and future obesity and diabetes treatments.
The investment will involve the modernization and retrofitting of the existing facility. According to the statement, the entire project on the 45-acre site is expected to create up to 600 construction jobs. Construction work, which has already begun, will be gradually completed between the end of 2027 and 2028.
On Monday, Novo Nordisk’s shares fell 5.7% in Copenhagen trading. Investment banking giant Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock from “buy” to “neutral,” slashing its price target following reduced expectations for the company’s next-generation drug candidate CagriSema. The experimental therapy demonstrated inferior weight-loss efficacy in a head-to-head trial compared to Eli Lilly’s competing treatment Zepbound, casting doubt on Novo Nordisk’s future positioning in the fiercely competitive obesity market.
Despite these headwinds, Novo Nordisk continues to expand its manufacturing footprint, betting on the oral formulation of Wegovy, which analysts believe could become a key growth driver amid intensifying competition with U.S. rival Eli Lilly — a company that also maintains significant manufacturing operations in Ireland.