Material Insights · Understanding the Material World

Custom synthesis (CDMO): Production

Why peptide and ADC capacity is tight while other lines idle

What this tab covers Who makes it and how much: world capacity and output, utilisation, the top producing countries and companies globally and in India, concentration, new capacity coming, and each region's position.
MeasureFigureDetailSource
World capacitynot published in aggregate
World outputrevenue about $173.7 billion (2025)Global Market Insights via GEN
Capacity utilisationnot publishedSmall-molecule capacity was loose in 2023-2025 after COVID; peptides and ADCs tight.qualitative
Concentrationtop-10 CDMOs about 20% of the $173.7 billion market (derived: $35.1 billion / $173.7 billion)The market is fragmented outside biologics.GEN (2026); derived
New capacitycapex: Divi's Rs 25.4 billion in FY26; Laurus capex 16% of sales; Bachem over CHF 400 million in 2026Divi's Kakinada Unit 3 (planned Rs 15 billion, Rs 6 billion capitalised); Laurus Vizag fermentation and API capacity; Piramal $90 million US expansion (Lexington, Riverview); Lonza considering $1 billion Ohio plant; Samsung bought a GSK site in Rockville for $353 million.BoB (May 2026); Laurus FY26; IntuitionLabs (2026); GEN (2026)

Top producing countries

  • United States: Thermo Fisher $7.1 billion (2025 estimate), Catalent (Novo Holdings)
  • Switzerland: Lonza CHF 6.53 billion, Siegfried CHF 1.33 billion, Bachem CHF 0.70 billion (2025)
  • China: WuXi AppTec RMB 45.45 billion, WuXi Biologics RMB 21.79 billion (2025)
  • South Korea: Samsung Biologics KRW 4.557 trillion (2025)
  • Japan: Fujifilm Biotechnologies JPY 257.2 billion; AGC Biologics JPY 129.4 billion (FY2025)
  • India: Divi's Rs 105.6 billion total (FY26), Piramal CDMO Rs 4,915 crore, Syngene Rs 3,739 crore, Laurus CDMO Rs 2,080 crore
GEN (2026); GEN (2026); Bachem; BoB; IntuitionLabs; Syngene; Laurus

Largest producers: global

CompanyCountryVolumeYearSource
Lonza CORE EBITDA margin 31.6%; 2026 guidance 11-12% CER growth Switzerland6.531 CHF billion sales (continuing CDMO) 2025Lonza Full-Year Results 2025
Thermo Fisher (Pharma Services)US7.142 $ billion revenue (estimate) 2025GEN Top 10 CDMOs 2026
WuXi AppTec H1 2026 revenue up 38.9%; 2026 guidance RMB 58.5-60.5 billion China45.45 RMB billion revenue 2025GEN Top 10 CDMOs 2026
WuXi BiologicsChina21.79 RMB billion revenue 2025GEN Top 10 CDMOs 2026
Samsung Biologics bidding CHF 1.46 billion for PolyPeptide South Korea4.557 KRW trillion revenue 2025GEN Top 10 CDMOs 2026
Siegfried small-molecule focus Switzerland1.328 CHF billion revenue 2025GEN Top 10 CDMOs 2026
Bachem peptides and oligos Switzerland695 CHF million sales 2025Bachem FY2025

Largest producers: India

CompanyCountryVolumeYearSource
Divi's Laboratories custom synthesis up 15.8% YoY; FY26 group revenue Rs 105.6 billion, EBITDA margin 32.6% India15.3 Rs billion custom synthesis sales in Q4 FY26 FY26BoB Capital Q4 FY26 review
Piramal Pharma Solutions down 10% on destocking; 15 sites India4,915 Rs crore CDMO revenue FY26IntuitionLabs
Syngene International EBITDA margin 25% (29% in FY25) India3,739 Rs crore revenue FY26Syngene Q4 FY26 press release
Laurus Labs (CDMO) up 36% India2,080 Rs crore CDMO revenue FY26Laurus FY26 press release
Cohance Lifesciences (formerly Suven Pharmaceuticals) Suven merged with Cohance (Advent International); FY26 figures not found Indianot published FY26not found

Indian CDMOs are small next to Lonza or WuXi (Divi's, the largest, had total FY26 revenue of about $1.2 billion at Rs 88/$). Their advantages are cost, chemistry talent and a non-Chinese location; their gaps are biologics scale and early-stage pipelines.

Position by region

RegionPosition
USBIOSECURE Act steers federally funded work away from listed Chinese firms; 5-year grandfathering of existing contracts after FAR rules.
EULonza, Siegfried, Bachem, Recipharm benefit from reshoring.
IndiaPositioned as China-plus-one; FY26 results mixed.
ChinaWuXi still growing fast (H1 2026 +38.9%) despite US pressure.
JapanFujifilm and AGC in biologics.
Middle East2026 crisis raised raw material costs for Indian CDMOs (BoB on Divi's).