Celltrion Inc., a leading biopharmaceutical firm from Korea, announced on Friday that it has finalized the purchase of a biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in the United States, enabling local contract manufacturing agreements under tariff-free terms.
Celltrion USA Inc., the U.S. branch of the company, completed the acquisition of the 460 billion-won ($317 million) facility in New Jersey from Eli Lilly and Company (LLY), the company announced.
After the acquisition, Celltrion established a contract manufacturing organization (CMO) agreement valued at 678.7 billion won to manufacture biopharmaceutical products for Eli Lilly over three years extending to 2029, it noted.
The U.S. acquisition aimed to proactively address the swiftly evolving biopharmaceutical markets. "A company representative stated that they intend to broaden the facility to obtain more global CMO agreements."
On Wednesday, Celltrion forecasted that its yearly operating profit would surpass 1 trillion won for the first time this year, fueled by robust sales of high-margin biosimilar products.
Also Read: 5 Key CTO Appointments in Asia for October 2025
In his New Year's address, Chairman Seo Jung-jin stated that the company will utilize the three years until 2028 to seek innovations focused on attaining a "quantum leap" in Celltrion's business outcomes.
Celltrion announced its intention to implement an artificial intelligence (AI) platform to enhance efficiency throughout its operations, including research and development (R&D), clinical trials, production, and sales.
Also Read: 5 CMO Appointments in Companies across Asia in November 2025
The firm announced it will set up business operations in China and India to investigate prospects in biopharmaceuticals and other thriving industries in those nations.
Celltrion has been growing its international biosimilar range, raising the count of authorized products from six to eleven. The organization plans to bring 18 biosimilars to market by 2030 and 41 by 2038.
Also Read: Look back 2025: Top 10 Leadership Transitions across Asia
The only drug it developed, Zymfentra, is presently available in the U.S. for the treatment of autoimmune conditions. The product is sold under the name Remsima SC in Europe and various other areas.