Europe’s Last Penicillin Plant Faces a Bitter Fight Against China’s Cheaper Drugs
The company says Chinese producers are undercutting European makers and putting the last fully integrated penicillin plant at risk, with imports now dominating the market.
- Sandoz has asked the European Commission to open an anti-dumping investigation into Chinese antibiotic imports, seeking potential tariffs to protect its Kundl facility following a March complaint.
- The Kundl facility, Europe's last fully integrated penicillin plant, faces existential threats from cheaper Chinese production and soaring energy costs, with EU electricity prices averaging nearly 50% above China in 2025.
- China's share of EU penicillin imports nearly doubled from 44% in 2019 to 86% last year; three years after a €200 million expansion, Sandoz argues its capacity is "not commercially sustainable."
- Sandoz argued that Beijing's control creates an "inherent strategic risk," warning that "antibiotic supply could feasibly become a tool of economic coercion or hybrid warfare, particularly during periods of diplomatic tension."
- Policymakers are scrambling to protect jobs as the EU goods trade deficit with China reached around €1 billion per day in 2025, while China dominates manufacturing for some 1.5 billion daily doses.
14 Articles
14 Articles
On the soles of the Austrian Alps, the latest fully integrated European factory that produces penicillin faces an uncertain future because China produces the same antibiotics and ingredients for the market...
Europe's last fully vertical penicillin factory, the Sandoz plant in Kundl, Austria, has been hit by a crisis caused by Chinese import pressure. The company has asked the European Commission for an anti-dumping investigation, as experts warn that the continent's pharmaceutical self-sufficiency is at stake.
How cheap Chinese antibiotics threaten Europe’s last major penicillin plant
By Marleen Kaesebier and Philip Blenkinsop KUNDL, Austria, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Tucked away in the green foothills of the Austrian Alps, the last fully integrated European penicillin plant faces an uncertain future in the shadow of rising Chinese industr...
The Economic Times
Times of IndiaEurope’s last penicillin plant faces a bitter fight against China’s cheaper drugs
The Sandoz penicillin plant in Kundl, Austria, is under threat from cheaper Chinese antibiotic production. European healthcare programs benefit from the lower prices, which could jeopardize self-sufficiency. China's share of the EU penicillins market has rapidly increased in recent years. European policymakers are becoming increasingly concerned about reliance on China for essential medicines. The current dynamics highlight the significant trade…
Eurostat data shows that China's share of imports of penicillin from the EU has increased considerably. Analysts say that addiction to antibiotics could provide Beijing with a strategic advantage. Sandoz calls for anti-dumping measures, CEO says antibiotics are cheaper than sweets in Europe, reports Reuters. Future uncertainty for Austrian company Sandoz China says that support [...]
Europe risks losing its last large penicillin plant, suffocated by competition from cheap antibiotics in China. The Austrian unit is experiencing huge losses and is threatened with closure, while the European Union's dependence on Chinese imports has increased alarmingly. In just six years, China's share of European penicillin and derivatives imports has risen from 44% to 86%, according to Eurostat data.
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