Eye on Pharma: Celltrion Will Contract With Lonza to Manufacture CT-P13

Celltrion announced this week that it will contract with Swiss biologics maker Lonza to manufacture biosimilar infliximab CT-P13, sold as Remsima and Inflectra, in Singapore.

Celltrion currently has a manufacturing capacity of 190,000 liters of drug substance per year in 2 plants in the Republic of Korea, and says that Lonza will help to diversify its supply base and meet the rising demand for the biosimilar, which references Remicade, in the United States and European Union.

Woo Sung Kee, Celltrion’s chief executive officer (CEO), said in a statement that “The stable manufacturing system and superb product quality management were the most important factors in choosing our partner Lonza. It will be a great opportunity to expand our global supplying capacity to provide the greater healthcare benefit through these cost-effective biologics since demand of biosimilars is increasing worldwide.”

Marc Funk, CEO of Lonza Group, added, “We will be working in close partnership with Celltrion to ensure it has access to the flexible capacity and agile teams it needs to respond to evolving market demand for Remsima. In the competitive biosimilars market, we can support Celltrion with our experience in biologics as it enables broader patient access to affordable, life-changing therapies.”

The 2 drug makers say that they spent the first quarter of 2019 working together on the validation process at Lonza’s facility, and have submitted the products made there for approval by the European Medicines Agency. Next, they will seek the FDA’s approval.

Announcement of the deal with Lonza is the latest in a string of efforts by Celltrion to expand its biosimilars in the global market. Last month, Celltrion Group disclosed in regulatory filings that it is adding 10 new offices in Europe and Central America as a means to set up a direct sales network for its biosimilars.