Novartis is the latest multinational drug manufacturer to prepare to ramp up its research and production operations in China as pharmaceutical investment capital flows out of the country.
The Swiss pharmaceutical company plans to invest a total of more than 3.3 billion Chinese yuan (approximately $480 million) to expand its manufacturing facilities in Beijing and strengthen its research and development campus in Shanghai, where the company’s Chinese headquarters are also located, according to a March 22 post (in Chinese) on the company’s official WeChat account.
About 1.5 billion yuan will be spent on the factory renovation, with Novartis telegraphing plans to construct new “factory buildings and auxiliary facilities.” The company also plans to introduce new production technologies and equipment to its Beijing facility, including aseptic preparation, liquid filling, and packaging.
Novartis established its Beijing factory in 1987 and says the facility can now produce up to 3 billion tablets or capsules and 550 million boxes of packaging annually, making it a key manufacturing node in the company’s global network.
The remaining approximately 1.8 billion yuan will be used by Novartis to begin “phase two” work at its Shanghai campus. The company explained that it plans to continue pouring money into its own research and development activities in China, while also “actively exploring potential external collaboration opportunities with China’s biopharmaceutical industry.”
In particular, Novartis said it is interested in supporting phase 1 and 2 clinical trials in China to strengthen its pipeline, but stressed it is not opposed to potential opportunities to collaborate “earlier and deeper” with local partners.
“China is critical to Novartis’ long-term development and innovation,” CEO Vasu Narasimhan said at the China Development Forum’s 2026 annual meeting, as Novartis adjusted the timing of its investment announcement. “We will continue to introduce innovative medicines to Chinese patients and strive to be China’s most valuable and reliable medical partner.”
Novartis has been operating in China for about 140 years and currently claims to serve more than 80 million patients in the country.
Yicai Global said the Beijing facility is Novartis’ largest branded pharmaceutical factory in China, while the Shanghai campus is the company’s third-largest research and development center in the world and the nerve center of its Asia-Pacific operations. Apart from these sites, Novartis also operates a generic drug production facility in Guangdong province and is building a radiopharmaceutical factory in Zhejiang province, the news agency noted.
At the Development Forum meeting, Novartis focused on the potential that its radiopharmaceuticals bring to cancer treatment in the country. Novartis has two approved radioligand therapies (RLTs) in the country, Lutacera and Pulvict, the latter of which was approved by China’s drug regulator in November for two indications.
The company calls for improved regulatory conditions for nuclear medicine in China, including a better framework for local production, and recommends improved hospital access and clinical application mechanisms to help RLT reach more cancer patients.
The company said it has completed construction of China’s first radioligand drug manufacturing facility in Haiyan, Zhejiang province, and that the facility is being ramped up “as planned” and will ultimately enable a “steady supply” of RLTs to treat multiple oncology indications in China.
Novartis’ new commitment to the country follows several similar investments by major pharmaceutical companies.
Just last week, AstraZeneca announced plans to build a commercial cell therapy manufacturing site and related innovation center in Shanghai as part of a broader $15 billion China investment commitment outlined in early 2026. While its spending is primarily focused on cell therapy drugs and radioconjugates, AZ also spent an additional $136 million in November on an ongoing expansion of its inhalation drug production site in Qingdao, China.
Separately, Eli Lilly in early March laid out blueprints for a $3 billion upgrade of its manufacturing operations in China and committed to establishing local production and supply of oral solid medicines, particularly as it ramps up production capacity for next-generation GLP-1 tablets, or Folglipron.
The project is scheduled to be implemented over the next 10 years and has so far included partnerships with local manufacturing partners, including Beijing-based CDMO Pharmaron.
