Insulin CMO Sued by US City Over Failed Manufacturing Plant

Elona Biotechnologies Inc – a subsidiary of Zimmerman Biotechnologies LLC – announced plans to build a manufacturing facility in Greenwood, Indiana in 2010 in a project for which it received some $8.4m (€6.2m) of loan support for the local government.

The plan said Elona founder Ron Zimmerman at the time was to make commercial quantities of active pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) for insulin and other biologic drugs for customers using recombinant protein technologies.

However, the project has now collapsed according to the Associated Press (AP)​ andlocal news sites​, which reported that construction of the facility has halted and that Greenwood wants its money back.

Greenwood attorney Krista Taggart told the AP that the lawsuit asks the courts to appoint a receiver to try to sell the unfinished facility and equipment for making insulin.

Elona’s problems with Greenwood began in January this year when – according to the minutes of a council meeting – officials voted that the firm had failed to meet the terms of the loan agreement because it failed “to operate its businesses as a going concern​.”

In the subsequent months city officials and Elona executives try to work on a rescue plan for the project, which had been expected to create around 70 high tech jobs. But, according to Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers “there wasn’t any progress​.” ​

Elona holds five US patents​ relating to insulin production that are based on recombinant DNA technology. The contract manufacturing organisation (CMO) also has intellectual property on human growth hormone (hGH) production.

Neither Elona Biotechnologies nor Greenwood Redevelopment Commission (RDC) responded to requests for comment ahead of publication.