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诺华将投资逾4.6亿美元，以提升北京的药品生产能力及上海的研发实力 2026-03-23
Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis said it plans to spend more than 3.3 billion yuan (US$460 million) in China, using around 1.5 billion yuan to enhance innovative drug output at its Beijing factory and the rest to strengthen capabilities at its research and development center in Shanghai's ZhangJiang Hi-Tech Park.
The new investment plan will launch on a large scale this year, Novartis announced during the opening of the annual China Development Forum on March 22. The firm will build new workshops and supporting facilities at its plant in Beijing's Changping district, adding cutting-edge production tech and equipment, including sterile preparation processes, liquid filling, and packaging, it noted.
The Beijing factory is Novartis' largest production base for branded prescription drugs in China, as well as an important manufacturing site in its global pharmaceutical supply network. Its product portfolio mainly consists of oral solid dosages.
China is crucial to Novartis' long-term development and innovation, said Chief Executive Officer Vas Narasimhan. The company will continue to bring innovative medicines to Chinese patients, staying committed to becoming the country's most valuable and trusted healthcare partner, he added.
The Shanghai facility is Novartis' third-largest R&D center and its Asia-Pacific operations hub. In addition, the Basel-based firm runs a generic drug production facility in Guangdong province and is building China's first radiopharmaceutical ligand therapy production base in Zhejiang province.
China has become a global innovation powerhouse for pharmaceutical products, making multinational drugmakers invest more in the country and cooperate with local innovative pharmaceutical firms, a senior executive at a multinational pharma company told Yicai. Such moves help improve their innovation capabilities and allow their innovative drugs to reach the Chinese market much faster, the person added.
Earlier this month, US drugmaker Eli Lilly announced a USD3 billion investment over the next decade to build a production and supply system for oral solid formulations in China to expand supply-chain production capacity for its next-generation small weight-loss drug. In late January, its UK-Swedish peer AstraZeneca said it plans to invest over USD15 billion in China through the end of 2030 to expand its drug production and R&D capabilities.
Source: Yicai Global
