Swabs from patients participating in the Phase 3 trial of the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine trial.
Karen Ducey / Getty Images
The big pharmaceutical company
GlaxoSmithKline
revealed the latest in a recent wave of Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing collaborations, claiming it would help manufacture up to 60 million
Novavaxfrom
vaccine for use in UK
GlaxoSmithKline
(ticker: GSK) said on Monday it would provide fill and finish capacity, the last step in the vaccine manufacturing process, at one of its facilities in England. The vaccine antigen itself will be made by a
Novavax
partner called FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies in another factory in England.
“This partnership with GSK continues the expansion of our global supply network, which we expect to increase overall production capacity and, if approved by regulatory agencies, support access to a new vaccine. potentially important against COVID-19, ”said the head of Novavax (NVAX). operations officer Rick Crowley in a statement.
Novavax shares were down 7.7% on Monday, following a Reuters report last week that the company delayed signing a vaccine supply contract with the European Union due to difficulties in obtaining raw materials for the manufacture of the vaccine. Novavax told Reuters at the time that talks with the EU were ongoing.
GlaxoSmithKline shares fell 0.3%. The company says it will start manufacturing the doses “as early as” May and the companies will immediately begin the necessary technology transfer.
“We have made sure that we can deliver these volumes without affecting the supply of our other life-saving drugs and vaccines, and without disrupting other COVID-19 collaborations in which GSK is engaged around the world,” said Roger Connor, president of GSK vaccines, in a press release.
The GlaxoSmithKline agreement with Novavax is just the latest in a long line of recent Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing partnerships. Some have been entered into between companies that normally compete for business.
Especially,
Merck
(MRK) agreed to help manufacture
Johnson & Johnsonfrom
(JNJ) Covid-19 vaccine in the United States, while
Sanofi
(SNY) said it would help make
BioNTechfrom
(BNTX).
Like Merck and
Sanofi ,
GlaxoSmithKline has seen its own Covid-19 vaccination efforts fail so far. The company had partnered with Sanofi on a Covid-19 vaccine early last year, but the disappointing initial results caused a substantial delay in the program.
Novavax shares have risen 50.5% so far this year. They have gained over 1000% in the past 12 months.
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