Lonza announces the expansion of its collaboration with Moderna, a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines. The expanded collaboration will further extend the manufacture of the drug substance for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and provides for the installation of a new manufacturing line for drug substance production at Lonza’s Geleen site in the Netherlands.
The new production line in Geleen will complement Lonza’s existing drug substance production network for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and deliver a crucial manufacturing step to increase overall drug substance output, according to the company. The new production line will reportedly contribute to the supply of up to an additional 300 million doses per year, at a 50ug dose, once operating at full capacity.
In May 2020, Lonza and Moderna announced a ten-year strategic collaboration agreement to enable the manufacture of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine and additional Moderna products in the future. Since then, Lonza has installed three production lines at its Visp, Switzerland site and one production line in Portsmouth in the U.S. In April 2021, Lonza and Moderna entered a new agreement to add three further production lines at its Visp site.
The new production line in Geleen is expected to be operational by the end of 2021. Lonza says it will leverage its existing infrastructure in Geleen to provide fast build-out and ramp-up of operations.
For more information, visit: www.lonza.com
