Novo sets aside $1.2bn for rare diseases plant
Representation of Odense production facility and warehouse
Novo Nordisk has started building its first brand-new manufacturing facility in Denmark since the millennium, saying it plans to spend around DKK 8.5 billion ($1.2 billion) on the plant.
The new site – in Odense – will include a production unit and warehouse that together will extend over 40,000 sq. metres, and will be used to make the company's rare disease therapies, such as its range of haemophilia drugs.
Construction at the site has already started and is expected to be completed in 2027, creating 400 permanent jobs once the new plant is fully operational.
While the attention of late has been firmly focused on Novo Nordisk's obesity and diabetes business – which is also seeing heavy investment in manufacturing – the company has a longstanding interest in the rare disease category.
It contributed nearly DKK 13 billion of total sales of DKK 204 billion in the first nine months of the year – up 3% on the same period of 2023 - but Novo Nordisk has a stated ambition of generating a "sustained growth outlook" for the business as sales of some products including its haemophilia have started to decline.
In its third-quarter update, the company said it was "working on gradually re-establishing supply of rare endocrine disorder products following a reduction of manufacturing output," including human growth hormone product Norditropin, which has been held back by supply constraints.
Its rare disease pipeline includes sickle cell disease therapy etavopivat, currently in the phase 2/3 HIBISCUS trial due to read out in 2026, and Inno8, an oral once-daily antibody fragment for the treatment of haemophilia A, which is in phase 1.
The Odense facility will make use of "advanced technology and innovative equipment to ensure the highest quality to patients and meet the growing global demand for our life-changing medicines," commented Henrik Wulff, Novo Nordisk's head of product supply, quality & IT.
Odense is Denmark's third-largest city and is famed for its green spaces and cycling culture, so Novo Nordisk says it is taking steps to preserve nature at its site and plant more than 4,000 new trees. The landscape will be designed by reusing excess soil, wooden materials and other sustainable resources to create lakes, forests and community spaces that will be open to the public.
"We are proud to build on our heritage in Denmark and look forward to embarking on this journey in Odense, a well-connected city with a dynamic community and talented workforce," said Wulff.
