Possibility of Moderna Contract Manufacturing... Domestic Companies Focused Interest

Supply Capacity Increases
Green Cross and Hanmi Pharmaceutical Mentioned

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] As Moderna plans to supply the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine to Korea earlier and increase the quantity, attention from related industries is focusing on the possibility of domestic contract manufacturing. Even if only the manufacturing is outsourced, if production takes place domestically, the supply capacity could increase. Although the government has stated that no concrete discussions have taken place yet, there is a possibility of an actual contract being finalized since domestic bio companies have production capabilities at a world-class level.

According to related ministries on the 30th, on the 28th, President Moon Jae-in and Moderna CEO St?phane Bancel discussed COVID-19 vaccine supply issues, and the conversation extended to research and development (R&D) and production matters. According to a Blue House official, CEO Bancel said, "I know that the Korean government places importance on bio new drug development and that Korean large corporations have strong production capabilities." He also mentioned the current shortage of their own production capacity relative to demand and added, "If contract manufacturing is done with Korean companies, large-scale production capacity can be established."

Yang Dong-gyo, Director of the Medical Safety and Prevention Bureau at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), said, "There are no concrete details about contract manufacturing at this time." However, he added, "Considering Moderna's technology and the excellent production capabilities of Korean companies, it would be mutually beneficial," and said, "Not only the KDCA but also related ministries will specifically pursue cooperation plans."

Another COVID-19 vaccine developer, AstraZeneca, and the domestic vaccine specialist SK Bioscience signed a contract for contract manufacturing last August and are currently supplying clinical trial prototypes. AstraZeneca was an early developer of the vaccine, and the Korean government was involved in that contract. SK Bioscience has manufactured and supplied various vaccines and is developing a synthetic antigen-type COVID-19 vaccine. They have also signed contract development and manufacturing agreements with another vaccine developer, Novavax.

The domestic companies most frequently mentioned as capable of contract manufacturing are GC Green Cross and Hanmi Pharmaceutical. The most notable, Green Cross, has unified the vaccine production processes, which were previously divided by factory, at its Ochang plant. This facility has signed a contract with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and is set to develop future COVID-19 vaccines. Moderna is also included among the vaccine manufacturers supported by CEPI.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.