South Korean biotechnology company Samsung Biologics is set to build a fifth plant (Plant 5) near its current Songdo site, as part of its strategy to expand the capacity of the Second Bio Campus (Bio Campus II).

The contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) will invest more than KRW1.9 trillion ($1.45bn) in the new facility that covers 96,000m² of the area and has 180,000l capacity.

It will start construction in the first half of this year, with plans to begin operations in 2025.

Upon completion of Plant 5, Samsung Biologics will maintain its global biomanufacturing capacity leadership with a total of 784,000l.

Samsung Biologics president and CEO John Rim said: “Given the continuing increase in the demand for outsourced manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals, we are proactively making this investment in alignment with our growth strategy to further strengthen our standing as a leading CDMO.

“The new facility will enable us to provide our customers with even greater innovation and services that will increase speed to market and flexibility.”

In July last year, Samsung Biologics purchased 360,000m² of land for its second Bio Campus, which will host additional large-scale plants and an open innovation centre.

The company announced an investment of KRW7.5 trillion ($5.2bn) for its second Bio Campus.

The company’s existing Plants 1, 2, and 3 are currently under near-full utilisation and Plant 4 started partial operations in October last year, with full operations expected by mid-year.

Samsung Biologics said that the new, Plant 5 will introduce advanced digitalisation and sustainability features, to further enhance operational efficiency.

Furthermore, the company’s president and CEO John Rim has been elected as chairman of the Board of Directors.

Rim said: “Our increased U.S. presence will allow us to provide support for clients with even greater agility and engage the broader biotech industry more than ever.”

In April last year, Samsung Biologics closed its previously announced acquisition of Biogen’s entire 50% equity stake in their joint venture, Samsung Bioepis, for $2.3bn.