Celltrion announced on Wednesday that it has bolstered its position as a global drug development powerhouse by unveiling its growth strategy and business vision to international investors at the 2026 JP Morgan (JPM) Healthcare Conference.
On Tuesday, Celltrion showcased its product pipeline roadmap, including novel drugs and next-generation biosimilars, on the main stage of the JPM event, while highlighting the competitiveness of its U.S. production facilities.
Seo Jin-seok, head of Celltrion’s business division, stated that it has entered a new phase of growth as a drug development company. It is significantly expanding the new drug development efforts, leveraging the stable cash flow from the biosimilar business and the antibody technology they’ve accumulated over the years.
The Company Plans to Launch 41 Biosimilars Sequentially by 2038
In the biosimilars business, it noted that they aim to expand their current portfolio of 11 biosimilar products to a total of 41 by 2038. As a result, the addressable global market size will grow more than fourfold compared to last year, surpassing 400 trillion KRW (about 270 billion USD). Celltrion’s current biosimilar portfolio spans various therapeutic areas, including autoimmune diseases, cancer, bone disorders, and eye conditions.
The company also revealed the development roadmap for its 16 new drug pipelines, encompassing antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), multi-antibodies, fetal Fc receptor (FcRn) inhibitors, and obesity treatments. Among these, ADC candidates CTP70, CT-P71, and CT-P73, as well as the multi-antibody candidate CT-P72, have all received Investigational New Drug (IND) approval last year and entered Phase 1 clinical trials. Key results from these four pipelines are expected to emerge sequentially starting in the second half of this year.
Notably, CT-P70 recently received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is expected to accelerate its development process. Celltrion plans to pursue Fast Track designations for other key pipelines, including CT-P71, CT-P72, and CT-P73.
Additionally, the new ADC candidate CT-P74 and FcRn inhibitor CT-P77 are scheduled for IND submission early next year, with the goal of submitting INDs for a total of 12 new drug pipelines by 2028.
The company also presented the development roadmap for its next-generation obesity treatment, CT-G32. Celltrion is developing CT-G32 as a quadruple-action agent, aiming to address the limitations of existing treatments, such as variability in individual treatment effects and muscle loss side effects. The company is rapidly advancing development, targeting IND submission in the second half of next year.
Seo emphasized that they are rapidly advancing new drug development through its own research and development (R&D) capabilities and collaborations with global biotech companies. This will further solidify Celltrion’s position as a drug development powerhouse.
Lee Heuk-jae, Senior Vice President of Celltrion, highlighted the competitiveness of the Branchburg production facility in New Jersey, which the company acquired last year, and outlined plans for expanding facility investments.
The company Aims to Develop This Facility as a Key Global CDMO Hub
By securing a production base in the U.S., Celltrion has mitigated tariff risks and enhanced global supply stability to meet its growing product portfolio and production demands. The facility is expected to generate revenue through contract manufacturing (CMO) starting this year, serving as a new growth driver.
Celltrion plans to gradually expand its current production capacity for active pharmaceutical ingredients (DS) from 66,000 liters to 99,000 liters (about 17,435 to 26,153 gallons) by 2028, with an additional expansion of 33,000 liters (about 8,717 gallons) planned by 2030, totaling 132,000 liters (about 34,870 gallons). Furthermore, the company plans to establish a finished pharmaceutical drug product (DP) production facility to complete an end-to-end supply chain in the U.S.
Celltrion aims to develop the Branchburg production facility into the foundation for a future research center in the U.S. and a core hub for its global comprehensive contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) business. This strategy seeks to strengthen its global market dominance by leveraging both its headquarters in Songdo, South Korea, and its local production base in the U.S., maximizing synergy with local research facilities.
Lee stated that it plans to establish the Branchburg production facility as a key production hub not only for Celltrion products supplied to the North American market but also for contract manufacturing of products from global pharmaceutical companies. This will enhance the global supply chain stability and operational efficiency.
He added that after securing the production facility, it will also pursue the establishment of a global R&D center linked to the local biotech cluster to attract top talent and further enhance the development competitiveness.
Meanwhile, Celltrion plans to explore various collaboration opportunities by meeting with multiple global pharmaceutical and biotech companies and investors during the event.