Novo Nordisk's strongest competitor, semaglutide, has officially been commercialized and launched in China.

On December 25th, a reporter from The Paper noticed that several e-commerce platforms now offer diagnosis, treatment, and medication services for Eli Lilly's glucose dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP)/glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist tilboptin (trade name: Mufengda). The indications of tilporide include diabetes and weight loss. At present, the prices of various businesses on the platform are different, and it is suggested that the specific price should be subject to the final selected store price.

image
Multiple e-commerce platforms offer the option to purchase Eli Lilly and its derivatives

Taking an Internet hospital business as an example, the quotation of 0.5ml: 2.5mg * 4 pieces is 2480 yuan, and the single piece price is 620 yuan. The merchant claims that their drugs are authentic, quickly registered, and reserved for appointment. The reporter from Pengpai News contacted the customer service of the merchant as a consumer, and the staff said that the medicine can be used for weight loss and can also be delivered by courier. A certain pharmaceutical e-commerce pharmacy's 0.5ml: 2.5mg * 4 units are priced at 1758 yuan, with an average of about 440 yuan per unit, but multiple regions show no stock. Another pharmaceutical e-commerce flagship store for medical services offers a price of 2580 yuan for the same specifications, which can be purchased directly.

Tilpotide is Lilly's flagship product, with the weight loss version of Zepound alone generating $3.018 billion in revenue in the first three quarters of 2024, placing it in the top tier of the global GLP-1 race alongside Novo Nordisk GLP-1 drug semaglutide. In May this year, the indication of Tilpolide for diabetes was approved in China, and the indication for weight loss was also officially approved in July. Now, with the official commercialization of tilpolide, domestic patients with diabetes and people with weight loss needs will be able to prescribe this drug under the guidance of doctors.

Regarding the price of Tilpotide, Lilly told The Paper that currently, Mufengda (Tilpotide Injection) is a self funded medication. Please refer to the pricing of major pharmaceutical institutions for specific prices. Regarding the production capacity of the drug, Lilly stated that the factory is operating day and night, and new manufacturing facilities are also being built overnight.

The price of Tilpotide in China is higher than that of Simeglutide, and the e-commerce platform has already provided a 500 yuan reservation service

In addition to the hot GLP-1 track, the competition is also quite fierce, with Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, known as the "GLP-1 duo", staging a "king's battle", especially in the field of weight loss.

On December 4th local time, Lilly announced that at 72 weeks, Zepbound defeated the weight loss version of semaglutide Wegovy in the primary endpoint and all five key secondary endpoints in a trial targeting obese or overweight adults. Compared to Wegovy, Zepbound has a 47% higher weight loss effect.

In terms of price, Lilly has also challenged Novo Nordisk. When the weight loss indication was approved in the United States, Eli Lilly revealed that the price of tilpotide is about $1059.87 per month, which is about 20% cheaper than Novo Nordisk's semaglutide 2.4mg. Lilly also implements a commercial savings card plan, which includes individuals with Zepbound commercial insurance who may be eligible to pay as low as $25 for prescriptions for 1 or 3 months; People who have commercial insurance but do not insure Zepbound may be eligible to pay as low as $550 for a 1-month Zepbound prescription, which is about 50% lower than the price tag.

Novo Nordisk's weight reducing version of semaglutide was officially commercialized on November 17th. According to the quotation from e-commerce platforms, the price of a single dose of semaglutide is above 1000 yuan, with 1.5ml (0.68mg/ml, 0.25mg/dose * 4 times) priced at 1396 yuan, 3ml (2.27mg/ml, 1.7mg/dose * 4 times) priced at 2126 yuan, and 3ml (3.2mg/ml, 2.4mg * 4 times) priced at 2706 yuan.

Based on the current prices on e-commerce platforms, the overall price of tilpotide is higher than that of semaglutide.

Prior to the emergence of diagnosis and treatment medication services, there were already e-commerce platforms offering appointment services for tilpotide, and some clinics launched appointment services worth 500 yuan on e-commerce platforms. The Pengpai News reporter consulted customer service personnel as a consumer, and the other party stated that 500 yuan is a deposit.

With the commercialization of the two star weight loss drugs, Simeglutide and Tilpotide, in China, the commercialization battle between Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly has officially begun. Regardless of who gains higher market share or revenue, it can be certain that the Chinese market will drive the performance of both pharmaceutical companies to rise.

Lilly China responds to the production capacity of Tilpotide: it is being produced and transported every day, which is unprecedented in scale

There is a demand for GLP-1 drugs but they cannot be purchased, and both semaglutide and tilpotide have experienced supply shortages worldwide. Production capacity is also a key factor for each company to win in the competition with GLP-1 drugs.

On December 16th local time, Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk announced plans to invest 8.5 billion Danish kroner (approximately 8.7 billion yuan) to build a brand new production facility in Odense, Denmark's third-largest city, with completion scheduled for 2027. The production facility covers an area of over 40000 square meters and will produce a variety of product types, including rare disease therapies such as hemophilia. Novo Nordisk did not disclose whether the factory produces the star GLP-1 drug semaglutide, but the relevant person in charge said that the factory will use advanced technology and innovative equipment to ensure the highest quality of drugs for patients and meet the growing global demand for life changing drugs.

In December, local time on December 5th, Eli Lilly announced a $3 billion investment to expand its manufacturing plant in Wisconsin, which it acquired earlier this year. Lilly announced plans to begin expansion projects next year, which is another step in its historic manufacturing expansion agenda aimed at helping more people who rely on its drugs. Earlier, in April 2024, Lilly held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new factory in Frankfurt, Germany. The factory is mainly used for producing injection drugs and injection pens, and is expected to officially operate in 2027 and ship globally. It is reported that Eli Lilly plans to invest $2.5 billion in the factory to address the shortage of drugs, including GLP-1 drug Zepbound.

On December 23, regarding the production capacity issue of tilboptide, Lilly China stated to reporters that Lilly produces and transports a large amount of tilboptide every day, which is unprecedented in scale, to meet the needs of patients. "Our factory is operating day and night, and new manufacturing facilities are also being built overnight. In July of this year, Eli Lilly China told reporters that a total of seven factories are currently increasing production capacity or under construction, and are expected to achieve the expectation set earlier this year - to increase the production of enteropancreatin drugs to at least 1.5 times that of the first half of 2023 by the second half of 2024.

According to the approved information, tilpotide is suitable for long-term weight management in adults with a body mass index (BMI) of 28 or above (obesity) or 24 or above (overweight) and at least one weight related complication (such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia, obstructive sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, etc.), based on controlled diet and increased exercise. Simeglutide targets overweight and obese patients with an initial BMI (body mass index) greater than or equal to 30, or between 27 and 30, and with at least one weight related comorbidity.

It should be emphasized that not all people, whether Smeaglutide or Tilpolotide, are suitable for the use of such drugs for weight loss or diabetes treatment, and patients should be standardized after a series of professional examinations and evaluations under the guidance of doctors. In October this year, the Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Obesity (2024 Edition) issued by the National Health Commission reminded that the rebound of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs was particularly raised: a real world data based on the American population showed that about 2/3 of the patients who started using GLP-1 as a weight-loss drug in 2021 would stop using GLP-1 within one year for various reasons (including drug side effects, economic burden, health insurance coverage, etc.). At present, some studies have focused on the weight loss effect of GLP-1 discontinuation, and the results have shown that there will be varying degrees of weight rebound after discontinuation, while continuing to use the drug can further reduce weight.