Novo Nordisk CEO Considers Opening U.S. Plant to Avoid Foreign Exchange Challenges

Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) has come up against the challenge of a volatile foreign exchange environment. CEO Lars Rebien Sorensen has suggested that perhaps a new insulin production plant in the U.S. may offer a viable solution to this problem.
According to Fierce Biotech:

The Danish drugmaker has other kinds of plants in the U.S.–filling, packing and devices–but it produces all of the active pharmaceutical ingredients for its insulinproducts in Denmark, Bloomberg reports. In fact, the company claims its plant in Kalundborg, Denmark, makes half the insulin used by diabetics around the world. Sørensen tells Bloomberg replicating that expertise overseas would be a big leap for Novo but that may be worth taking in anticipation of getting approval for a new game-changing insulin candidate.
In July, Novo announced promising results from its first Phase IIIa trial of a new oral version of its once-a-week injectable semaglutide. The GLP-1 acts as an analog of the hormone GLP-1 to promote the body’s natural production of insulin, spurring weight loss and relieving the symptoms of Type 2 diabetes. Novo is betting billions of dollars on the drug, in anticipation of more billions in return. Assuming approval of the oral version, Novo expects most of the sales would be in the U.S.