A whole Lotte land: CDMO selects Songdo to build ‘mega’ plants

Lotte has signed a land purchase agreement in Songdo, Korea to build three plants with a total of 360,000 L capacity.

Contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) Lotte Biologics said in January it would invest $3 billion over the next seven years to construct three ‘mega’ plants in Korea with a production capacity of 360,000 L.

Nine months later, the firm took its first steps to establishing the planned plants and signed a land purchase agreement with the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZ) in Songdo. No specific financial details related to the land have been disclosed, however the CDMO said the three “Bio Plants” will be located at Block KI20 in Zone 11 (418, 418-9, Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon) by 2030.

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Lotte said the site was selected because of its transport links, including Incheon International Airport and Incheon Port. Furthermore, its infrastructure in the Seoul metropolitan area and existing activity in the Life Sciences space fits with the CDMO’s mid-to-long-term plans.

“I am delighted to envision a new future for Lotte Biologics in Songdo International City, a global bio-cluster,” said Richard Lee, CEO of Lotte.

“We are actively preparing for the groundbreaking of the Bio Plant, which will establish us as a reliable partner and a leading player in the global CDMO market.”                       

Each plant will be able to produce 120,000 L of antibody drugs. The company also said it is considering the addition of small-scale bioreactors for clinical material manufacturing and drug product (DP) facilities.

Plant one is anticipated to be completed by 2025, Plant two is expected to be ready by 2027, and Plant three in 2030. Full-scale operations are predicted to begin by 2034 and this will take Lotte’s total manufacturing capacity to 400,000 L.

After finalizing preparations such as vendor choice and reviewing specific processes, the CDMO said it plans to break ground on Plant one during the first quarter of next year. The site will also include a Bio-Venture Initiative for start-ups and venture companies to make use of Lotte’s facilities and form a place for collaboration.

The firm already has a facility in East Syracuse, New York to serve its CDMO business in the US. It acquired the facility from Bristol Myers Squibb and the deal closed on January 1^st this year and includes the equipment, property, plant, workforce, and technical capabilities.