The high-tech insulin plant is expected to be operational by 2029 and will employ several hundred specialists.

The Frankfurt-Höchst site is already one of Sanofi's largest plants with around 6,600 employees, around 4,000 of whom are directly or indirectly involved in insulin production. The diabetes drug Lantus, with which Sanofi recently achieved annual sales in the billions, is produced in Höchst.

Sanofi manufacturing and supply global head Brendan O’Callaghan stated: “With this project, we reaffirm our commitment to help diabetes sufferers around the world. We’re using the long-time expertise of our Frankfurt BioCampus and its highly qualified personnel.”

Heidrun Irschik-Hadjieff, Sanofi Germany chairman, added: “Our planned investment underscores the central role played by the Frankfurt BioCampus in strengthening the resilience of global insulin production. The strong support of both the national and regional German governments is a powerful signal for the biopharmaceutical industry.”

Sanofi will execute the project with support from the German national government and the Hesse state government, subject to European Union approval, the company said.

Until recently, Sanofi was reportedly considering relocating insulin production to France. In July, the newspaper Handelsblatt reported that Sanofi would probably remain in Frankfurt and – contrary to initial concerns – would not withdraw from the Frankfurt site.

The investment comes in the wake of the German government’s adoption of an official pharma strategy in 2023 to bolster support for pharmaceutical companies companies – and this strategy is apparently working. Among recent wins by Germany to attract healthcare investments, Daiichi Sankyo said in February it would spend about €1 billion to boost its work on precision cancer drugs near Munich. In November last year, US drugmaker Eli Lilly announced to invest €2.3 billion to produce obesity and diabetes drugs in Germany.

In addition to the expansion of its German plant, Sanofi also plans to invest more than €1 billion to increase its production capacity at three sites in France.