French drugmaker Sanofi plans to invest 1 billion euros ($1.05 billion) to build a new insulin production base in Beijing, a local authority in the city said on Monday, citing a memorandum of understanding the company signed with an economic zone.

The site will be in the Beijing Economic and Technological Development Zone where Sanofi already has production facilities, the city's Yizhuang authority said on its WeChat account.

($1 = 0.9500 euros)

(Reporting by Brenda Goh, Editing by Louise Heavens)