Eli Lilly and Company has broken ground on a new $6.5 billion pharmaceutical manufacturing site in Houston, Texas, as the company expands its U.S. production capacity for medicines.
The new facility will manufacture Foundayo (orforglipron), Lilly’s synthetic oral GLP-1 medicine, along with other small-molecule medicines and advanced therapies. The investment is part of Lilly’s broader plan to strengthen medicine production in the United States and meet growing demand.
Foundayo is a GLP-1 receptor agonist approved in the U.S. for weight management in adults with obesity or overweight and a related health condition. Unlike peptide-based GLP-1 medicines, Foundayo is a small molecule, which Lilly says can be manufactured using more established and scalable production methods.
The medicine is currently under regulatory review in more than 40 countries, with Lilly targeting a global rollout in 2027. The company is also studying Foundayo for other potential uses, including type 2 diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea, with additional data expected later this year.
The Houston facility is expected to create more than 600 high-paying permanent jobs, including positions for engineers, scientists, operations staff and laboratory technicians. Lilly also expects about 4,000 construction jobs to be created as the site is built and brought online.
As part of its investment in the local workforce, Lilly is providing $12.5 million to support a partnership with San Jacinto College. The program will develop training pathways for advanced chemical manufacturing careers, including roles for technicians, operators and maintenance professionals. Lilly is also providing a $2.5 million donation to the San Jacinto College Foundation to support scholarships for eligible students.
The Houston site will also manufacture advanced therapeutics, including oligonucleotides. These medicines can target genetic processes and are being developed for diseases that may not have been treatable with earlier approaches.
Lilly plans to use artificial intelligence, machine learning, advanced data analytics and digitally integrated systems at the facility. The company said these technologies will help automate manufacturing operations, improve efficiency and support consistent production of high-quality medicines.
The Houston investment is part of Lilly’s wider expansion of U.S. manufacturing. Since 2020, the company has announced 10 new U.S. manufacturing sites, including five focused on active pharmaceutical ingredients, four for injectable medicines and devices, and one for genetic medicines.
With the Houston facility, Lilly is adding further domestic capacity for its growing pipeline of medicines while also developing a skilled workforce to support biopharmaceutical manufacturing in the region.