Lonza expands into Pure-Play CDMO with massive dual biologics expansion

SWITZERLAND—Swiss contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) Lonza is strengthening its position in the fast-growing biologics market through two major initiatives.

The company has announced plans to expand its antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) manufacturing capabilities in Switzerland while also broadening its long-term partnership with a leading, though undisclosed, U.S.-based biopharmaceutical company.

The latest investments reflect growing global demand for outsourced manufacturing of complex biologic medicines and advanced cancer therapies.

Expanding capacity for the growing ADC market

Lonza will increase its payload-linker manufacturing capacity at its research and production hub in Visp, Switzerland.

Although the company did not disclose the value of the investment, it said the expansion will significantly strengthen its ability to manufacture highly potent active pharmaceutical ingredients (HPAPIs) while introducing new commercial-scale capabilities for producing ADC payload-linkers.

The expansion will take place within an existing Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facility, where Lonza will add new payload-linker production and purification capacity alongside dedicated analytical and process development laboratories.

The multipurpose facility has been designed to support a broad range of molecules and can be expanded further with additional production suites as customer demand increases.

The new facility will complement Lonza’s integrated ADC manufacturing network in Switzerland, which already includes monoclonal antibody production, conjugation, drug product manufacturing and quality control capabilities across its Visp and Stein sites.

Together, these facilities allow customers to develop and manufacture ADC therapies from early development through commercial production.

According to Christian Seufert, Head of Advanced Synthesis at Lonza, rapid growth in the ADC market is driving demand for increasingly sophisticated payload-linkers that require specialized manufacturing technologies.

He said the latest investment reinforces Lonza’s commitment to expanding its integrated ADC platform and helping customers move more efficiently from clinical development to commercial supply.

The additional manufacturing capacity is expected to become operational in 2028 and will support both clinical and commercial programs.

Strategic U.S. partnership grows

Alongside the manufacturing expansion, Lonza has also extended its strategic collaboration with a major U.S. biopharmaceutical company by adding commercial manufacturing for two biologics programs, with options to include two additional programs in the future.

The expanded agreement builds on a long-standing relationship that already covers multiple biologics across clinical and commercial development.

Under the agreement, Lonza will provide manufacturing services from all of its commercial-scale biologics facilities in the United States, supported by its drug substance and drug product development and manufacturing operations across Europe.

In addition to manufacturing biologics, Lonza will provide advanced process intensification technologies, including N-1 perfusion, manufacturing process optimization to shorten production cycles, and end-to-end support covering drug substance, drug product manufacturing and related services.

The multi-site production network is designed to provide customers with greater flexibility, supply security and the ability to scale manufacturing as product demand evolves.

Building on recent business momentum

The latest announcements continue Lonza’s strategy of expanding its specialized manufacturing capabilities following its transition into a pure-play CDMO earlier this year.

Four months ago, the company completed the sale of its Capsules and Health Ingredients (CHI) business to the private equity firm Lone Star for 2.3 billion Swiss francs (US$3 billion), enabling it to focus entirely on biologics, advanced synthesis and specialised modalities.

Lonza has also benefited from strong biologics demand since acquiring Roche’s Vacaville, California, manufacturing facility in 2024 for US$1.2 billion, helping the company achieve 22% growth at constant exchange rates last year.

More recently, the company has continued strengthening its ADC portfolio through licensing agreements and investments in next-generation conjugate technologies, reinforcing its position as a leading manufacturing partner for complex oncology therapies.