BERLIN, July 1 (Reuters) - French drugmaker Sanofi

is nearing a decision to invest between 1.3 billion

and 1.5 billion euros ($1.4-$1.6 billion) to upgrade its

production of long-acting insulin shots in Germany, a person

familiar with the plan told Reuters on Monday.

The expected investment would be the latest in a string of

recent wins by Germany's ruling coalition to attract foreign

investments, particularly in the pharmaceuticals sector.

German newspaper Handelsblatt, which first reported the

investment plan on Monday, cited German government sources as

saying Sanofi had changed course after initially considering

shifting production of its insulin brand Lantus to France, and

was now close to committing to an upgrade of its German site in

Frankfurt's Hoechst district.

Sanofi's possible expansion in Germany comes as France's

far-right National Rally scored major wins in the first round of

parliamentary elections, fuelling uncertainty over what a

potential shift in political power could mean for business,

though the source did not mention political factors as possible

influences and gave no reason for favouring Germany.

The company said it would not comment on specific investment

projects. A German government spokesperson said Chancellor Olaf

Scholz was "very much looking forward" to further developments

but it was for the company to provide an update.

Among recent wins by Germany's ruling coalition in

attracting healthcare investments, Daiichi Sankyo ( DSKYF ) said

in February it would spend about 1 billion euros to boost its

work on precision cancer drugs near Munich.

U.S. drugmaker Eli Lilly ( LLY ) in November last year

pledged to invest 2.3 billion euros to make obesity and diabetes

drugs in Germany.

The world's other largest insulin maker, Novo Nordisk

, meanwhile, has recently showed signs of prioritising

manufacturing of its blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy, and

diabetes drug Ozempic, which contains the same active

ingredient, over the production of insulin.

In November for example Novo announced it would discontinue

one of its insulins, Levemir, citing manufacturing constraints

among other issues.

Scholz's coalition government, whose three constituent

parties suffered big losses in European elections last month, is

eager to bolster its economic credentials ahead of general

elections next year.

Europe's biggest economy is expected to return to growth of

0.3% to 0.4% this year, after a 0.3% contraction in 2023, which

was the weakest performance among big euro zone countries.

But foreign companies announced record levels of new

investment in Germany last year despite the downturn and high

energy prices, a report showed in May.