Sandoz opens biosimilar development centre in Slovenia
pharmafile | June 19, 2026 | News story | Business Development | Sandoz, biosimilar development
Sandoz has opened a new biosimilar development centre in Ljubljana, Slovenia, as part of efforts to expand its in-house capabilities and accelerate development of future biosimilar medicines.
The $99m facility (pictured) covers around 10,000m² and employs more than 200 scientists. It will support end-to-end development of both drug substances and finished products, with capabilities including analytics, data science and digital development technologies.
As biological medicines designed to be highly similar to existing approved biologics, biosimilars have the potential to increase patient access to treatment while helping healthcare systems manage the growing cost of complex therapies.
Gilbert Ghostine, Chairman of Sandoz, said the company had played a pioneering role in biosimilars over the past two decades and that the new centre would help bring high-quality treatments to patients more quickly and affordably.
The Ljubljana site will be integrated with Sandoz facilities in Germany and the UK, including bioanalytical laboratories in Holzkirchen and device development operations in Cambridge.
According to the company, the centre will support a biosimilar pipeline that currently includes up to 32 products in development across therapeutic areas including oncology, immunology, neurology, ophthalmology and endocrinology.
Richard Saynor, Chief Executive Officer of Sandoz, said the facility would “accelerate our leading biosimilar pipeline and, together with our manufacturing investments, help move biosimilars efficiently into production.”
He predicted a ‘golden decade’ of more affordable healthcare, with approximately $320bn in biologic patent expiries expected over the period. The company said its investment would create opportunities for expanded patient access to lower-cost biosimilar medicines.
The new centre forms part of a wider investment programme in Slovenia exceeding $1.1bn. Additional projects include facilities in Lendava for drug substance production and Brnik for sterile manufacturing and packaging.
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