Eli Lilly begins construction on $6.5 billion Houston facility

New facility will manufacture active pharmaceutical ingredients for medicines like Foundayo (orforglipron), strengthening domestic supply chain

Eli Lilly and Company has officially broken ground on its new $6.5 billion manufacturing facility in Houston, Texas. This site is the company’s fifth domestic location dedicated to producing active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and marks its tenth U.S. manufacturing site announced since 2020. The project is a key component of Lilly's broader $50 billion initiative to reshore drug production, aimed at meeting rising domestic healthcare demands while exporting American-manufactured treatments globally. Once operational, the Houston facility will specialize in producing advanced therapeutics and small-molecule drugs, most notably Foundayo (orforglipron)—Lilly’s first synthetic, oral GLP-1 medication.

Foundayo (orforglipron), an FDA-approved GLP-1 receptor agonist developed by Eli Lilly and Company, is indicated for chronic weight management in adults who have obesity, or those who are overweight with at least one weight-related comorbidity. Unlike traditional peptide-based therapies, Foundayo is a small-molecule drug. Because small molecules leverage well-established manufacturing technologies, the medication offers superior scalability to meet high market demand. Currently undergoing regulatory review in over 40 countries ahead of a planned global rollout in 2027, the drug is also being evaluated by Lilly for expanded indications—including type 2 diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea—with clinical data anticipated later this year.

David A. Ricks, Lilly Chair and CEO: "We are thrilled to break ground on our latest 'medicines made in America' site in the great state of Texas. This $6.5B investment will help change the game for tens of millions of people suffering from overweight, obesity and its consequences like diabetes. We will make and ship Lilly's latest products from Texas to people here at home and around the world."

Building a talent pipeline in Houston

Lilly is providing $12.5 million to support a relationship with San Jacinto College to give Houstonians a pathway into advanced chemical synthesis manufacturing careers, with no prior experience required. This relationship will focus on developing training pathways and expanding the equipment and facility capacity needed to produce technicians, operators, maintenance professionals, and other manufacturing talent, while also leveraging Lilly experts to support curriculum development and instructor readiness and preparation. Separately, Lilly is providing a $2.5 million charitable donation to the San Jacinto College Foundation to support scholarships for eligible students.

Lilly is currently hiring in Houston and expects the new facility to create more than 600 high-wage jobs like engineers, scientists, operations personnel, and lab technicians — along with 4,000 construction jobs as the site is being built and brought online. Visit the Lilly Houston career page for open positions or join Lilly's talent community for future opportunities.

Edgardo Hernandez, Executive Vice President and President of Lilly Manufacturing Operations: "When you invest in a place like Houston, you invest in its people first. This facility will run on the talent of this community, powered by our relationship with San Jacinto College. We're hiring across the greater Houston area to help residents build careers close to home. The facility itself is being built to the highest standards for safety, quality and responsible stewardship of the environment, and every one of these jobs helps bring innovative medicines to the patients counting on them."

In addition to Foundayo, the Houston site will focus on advanced therapeutics that were not within reach even a few years ago. This will include oligonucleotides, a class of medicines that can work at the genetic level to switch off the production of specific proteins to treat disease closer to its source.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott: "Texas is the global hub for life sciences. This $6.5 billion Lilly investment in Houston is the largest active pharmaceutical ingredient project in Texas history and will create more than 600 high-wage jobs, right here in Texas. Texas will produce these medicines at home so we can deliver life-changing treatments to millions of Americans."