Eli Lilly unveiled its plan to build a $6 billion manufacturing plant in Huntsville on Tuesday, the largest initial investment in Alabama’s history. The announcement came during an event at the Von Braun Center’s Mars Music Hall, attended by Governor Kay Ivey and other state and local officials.
The location in Huntsville was chosen from more than 300 applications and was ultimately chosen given its proximity to the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, which supports bioscience workforce training and research.
Construction is set to begin in 2026, with completion slated in 2032 and will include manufacturing, logistics, packaging, lab and utilities space. The facility will bring 450 permanent jobs for engineers, scientists, operations personnel, and lab technicians and 3,000 construction jobs.
Lilly says the Huntsville site will be built around advanced manufacturing technologies, incorporating machine learning, artificial intelligence, digitally integrated monitoring systems and data analytics to streamline production.
The plant will produce active pharmaceutical ingredients for peptide and small-molecule medicines, which includes orforglipron, the company’s first oral GLP-1 receptor agonist for obesity treatment which the company anticipates submitting to global regulatory agencies for obesity by the end of this year.
The company is preparing to compete with Novo Nordisk, which is developing a pill version of its obesity drug Wegovy at facilities in North Carolina.
It is the third of four U.S. manufacturing plant plans the company will announce this year. The Huntsville project joins a $5 billion API facility near Richmond, Virginia, and a $6.5 billion “mega site” in Houston as part of Lilly’s broader $27 billion “Lilly in America” investment strategy unveiled in Washington, D.C. earlier this year. The company said it will disclose the location of the fourth and final new manufacturing site in the coming weeks.
“Huntsville and our entire state have a proven legacy of innovation, and there is no better home for Lilly than right here in Alabama. Our roots in the biosciences industry run deep, and Alabama’s contributions to this burgeoning sector continue,” said Governor Ivey.
Company officials project a significant economic ripple effect. Every dollar invested in the facility could generate up to four dollars in additional local economic activity. And alongside the direct manufacturing positions, the project is expected to spur several additional jobs in supporting industries such as supply chain operations, logistics and retail.
“The competition for a manufacturing facility of this magnitude is extremely challenging, and this result shows Alabama’s pro-business climate, outstanding workforce and strong community support is a winning combination,” said Alabama Department of Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair.
