US facility · Biotech manufacturing
Fujifilm picks North Carolina for a $2 billion biologic drug plant
- Company
- Fujifilm (Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies) (Tokyo)
- Project
- New cell-culture drug plant, Holly Springs, North Carolina
- Value
- $2B
- Status
- Opened in September 2025. Fujifilm added a $1.2 billion expansion in 2024.
- Date
- 2021-03-18
Fujifilm said it would spend more than ¥200 billion (about $2 billion) to build North America's largest cell-culture plant for making biologic drugs for other companies, in Holly Springs near Raleigh. The plan started with eight 20,000-liter bioreactors, with room for 24 more, and promised 725 jobs by the end of 2028. It was due to start operating in spring 2025.
Why it matters
It was one of the largest Japanese factory investments in the US that year and made Fujifilm, best known for cameras and film, a major supplier to US drug companies.
The plan
On March 18, 2021, Fujifilm said its contract-manufacturing arm, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, would build a new plant in Holly Springs, North Carolina, a town south of Raleigh in Wake County. The investment was more than ¥200 billion, or about $2 billion. The site would make biologic medicines, such as antibodies, by growing living cells in large steel tanks called bioreactors.
Size and jobs
The first phase had eight 20,000-liter bioreactors, and the design left room for 24 more. The company promised 725 jobs by the end of 2028, with average pay close to $100,000. North Carolina offered a state job-development grant. Local officials described it as the largest end-to-end cell-culture plant in North America, meaning it could handle both the drug substance and the final filling and packaging.
Why Fujifilm did it
Fujifilm moved into health care as its photo-film business shrank. Contract manufacturing of biologic drugs was growing fast as drug companies outsourced production, and the US is the largest market for these medicines. Being close to US customers, and in the Research Triangle area with its life-science workforce, was the main reason for the site.
What happened next
In April 2024 Fujifilm said it would add another $1.2 billion and 680 jobs to the site. The plant opened in September 2025, and Fujifilm signed long-term supply deals with large drugmakers to fill it.
Sources
Kakehashi M&A News home
