By Business & Finance 
Eli Lilly, the international drugmaker, has announced plans to invest in a new manufacturing site in the US. The pharmaceutical giant has three sites in Ireland, which employ 3,000 people in total. The group is our FDI of the Month.
International drugmaker, Eli Lilly, announced plans in May to invest $5.3 billion (€4.9 billion) in a new manufacturing site in the United States. This brings total investment in the site, which is based near its Indianapolis headquarters, to $9 billion.
The increase in investment in the site is to help boost production of its popular diabetes and weight loss drugs, in particular the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in Mounjaro and Zepbound.
Eli Lilly is the world’s largest pharmaceutical group by market value.
Eli Lilly was founded in 1876. It has grown to establish offices in 18 countries, including Ireland, and sells its products in 125 countries.
The company has operated in Cork for over 40 years. It has a manufacturing campus in Kinsale, as well as a site at Little Island, where its Cork Global Business Solutions centre has been based for a decade. Lilly was named the Cork Chamber of Commerce “Cork Company of the Year” in May 2021, with a winning joint submission by the two sites.
In March 2023, the company announced its intent to increase investment to nearly $1 billion at its new biologics drug substance manufacturing facility, in Limerick in the Mid West region. The company had previously announced a $500 million investment.
Construction of the new 500,000 sq. ft. facility is currently underway at IDA’s Business Park in Raheen and is expected to create more than 300 highly skilled jobs across areas including engineering, scientists, and operations.
Once the site is operational, the company’s total investment in the site will be approximately $1 billion.
Eli Lilly currently employs 3,000 people across all of its sites in Ireland.
