Hanmi-Engchem Signs Contract for Contract Manufacturing of Indian COVID-19 Vaccine 'ZyCov-D'

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Hanmi Pharm will undertake contract manufacturing (CMO) of the plasmid DNA (pDNA) COVID-19 vaccine 'ZyCov-D,' developed in India and licensed by Enzychem Lifesciences.

Hanmi Pharm announced on the 11th that it signed a 'technology transfer and facility preparation contract for the contract manufacturing of the ZyCov-D vaccine' with Enzychem Lifesciences on the 7th, and has begun technology transfer and production facility optimization for vaccine drug substance (DS) manufacturing. Enzychem Lifesciences had been preparing production after signing a technology transfer agreement with Zydus Cadila, the Indian company that developed ZyCov-D, at the end of last year.

The ZyCov-D vaccine is a COVID-19 genetic vaccine that received emergency use authorization from India's Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) in August last year. It is not sensitive to temperature, can be stored at 2?8℃, and can be kept for three months even at 25℃, making it advantageous for global supply.

According to the contract between the two companies, Hanmi Pharm will perform process reproduction, production facility optimization, and assay method technology transfer at its Pyeongtaek Bio Plant upon Enzychem Lifesciences' manufacturing outsourcing request for the main vaccine production. These tasks are expected to be completed by the second quarter of this year, after which the two companies will sign a main contract for commercial production and begin full-scale manufacturing. In particular, leveraging the ease of storage, they plan to prioritize supply to major Southeast Asian and South American countries with underdeveloped quarantine infrastructure.

Son Ki-young, Chairman of Enzychem Lifesciences, said, "Starting with this contract, we will produce and sell more than 80 million doses of pDNA COVID-19 vaccine annually from this year." He added, "With pride in the 'Made in Korea' vaccine, we aim to supply advanced technology vaccines worldwide and contribute to resolving the COVID-19 pandemic by establishing a global vaccine manufacturing hub and becoming a global vaccine manufacturer."

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