BioNTech is about to acquire a small molecule plant site from Novartis in Singapore and turn it into the country’s first mRNA production facility.
In May 2021, BioNTech said it aims to bring messenger RNA (mRNA) production to Asia by building a facility in Singapore. 18 months later, the company reached an agreement to obtain a GMP-certified production facility in the island state of pharmaceutical Novartis.
“Novartis announced today that it has signed an agreement with BioNTech to sell the assets of its Singapore small molecule site. As part of the agreement, Novartis will supply engineering and product movement to help BioNTech identify its production footprint in Singapore,” Novartis said. a spokesperson told BioProcess Insider.
“The asset transaction follows Novartis’ resolution announced in 2020 to halt operations on its small molecule from Singapore by the end of 2023, through a phase-out.
“Throughout the process, Novartis continued to explore features that could allow the site to remain operational and the opportunity to sell the site’s assets and status quo of BioNTech’s mRNA vaccine production operations in Singapore proved to be the most productive option. “
BioNTech says it expects the facility to be fully operational by the end of 2023 and will be the first messenger RNA (mRNA) production facility in Singapore. scale.
“We are excited to take another step towards expanding our global production network in Singapore, supporting the production of mRNA-based vaccines and treatments for the Asia-Pacific region. The acquisition gives us the opportunity to boost the status quo of an mRNA production facility and thereby build capacity more quickly for prospective clinical studies and publicity source of our vaccines and mRNA therapies for the region,” said Sierk Poetting, chief operating officer of BioNTech.
The company said this could only come with its COVID-19 vaccine created in partnership with Pfizer, as well as its oncology product applicants if approved by regulatory authorities.
According to BioNTech, the site will be a fully incorporated mRNA production facility, with an expected annual production capacity of up to several hundred million vaccine doses after its complete completion. In addition, the site would have the possibility of increasing its production to other modalities, such as mobile therapies.
BioNTech has made a number of investments to bring mRNA production to other parts of the world. In October 2021, the German biotech company signed a memorandum with the Rwandan government and the Pasteur Institute in Dakar, Senegal, to build an mRNA plant in Africa. A little later, the company unveiled plans to build a research and production center for mRNA products in Melbourne, Australia.
BioNTech says it will create more than a hundred jobs in Singapore through 2024 in a variety of roles including engineering, operations, quality, finance, supply chain control and human resources.
Novartis told the publication that the agreement in question “does not come with the transfer of Novartis workers to BioNTech,” but creates “certain employment opportunities for Novartis’ affiliates at the Singapore small molecule site and will allow the site to continue the pharmaceutical business. “. manufacturing heritage of the region.
Novartis says it has sold its small molecule site, is still engaged in Singapore through its other services and operations and the resolution to sell the asset “is a component of Novartis’ strategy to reinvent production through an industry-leading transformation procedure to build a future-proof operating model.
Categories: BioProcess Insider, Facilities & Capacity