Lotte Biologics signs long-term biosimilar drug substance supply deal with Alvotech

Lotte Biologics has signed a long-term contract with NASDAQ-listed global biotech firm Alvotech to manufacture antibody biosimilar drug substances.

Lotte Biologics announced Wednesday that it concluded the agreement with Alvotech at CPHI Milan 2026, the world's largest pharmaceutical and biotech exhibition, held in Milan, Italy.

The signing ceremony was attended by Lotte Biologics co-CEOs James Park and Shin Yu-yeol, along with Alvotech Chairman Robert Wessman and CEO Lisa Graver, among other senior executives from both companies.

Under the contract, Lotte Biologics will manufacture multiple antibody biosimilar drug substances for Alvotech at its production facility in Syracuse, New York, for supply to global markets.

The deal gives Alvotech a large-scale US manufacturing base to meet its pipeline demand over the next decade. Commercial supply will begin after technology transfer, manufacturing qualification and regulatory approval. The specific contract value and product names were not disclosed under a confidentiality agreement between the two companies.

The Syracuse factory, which will produce the contracted volumes, is equipped with 40,000-liter bioreactors and recently passed an unannounced US Food and Drug Administration inspection with zero observations, demonstrating its rigorous quality control capabilities.

"Alvotech's biosimilar development capabilities and Lotte's commercial manufacturing strength will generate powerful synergies," James Park said. "In line with our expanding partnership, we will fully activate a dual-site production model linking our Syracuse, New York facility with the Songdo Bio Campus in Korea, which is set to be completed in November."

Lisa Graver, CEO of Alvotech, said the partnership with Lotte Biologics secures additional manufacturing capacity in New York, providing "a solid production foundation to support patients worldwide and underpin future product launches."