Samba Signs 385 Billion KRW Contract with AstraZeneca

A Total of 11 Contracts Signed This Year... Totaling KRW 1.8127 Trillion

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jung] Samsung Biologics has signed a long-term contract manufacturing organization (CMO) supply agreement with AstraZeneca, which is developing a vaccine for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The contract is valued at $330.8 million (KRW 385 billion), and including this agreement, Samsung Biologics has secured contracts totaling KRW 1.8127 trillion this year.

Samsung Biologics announced on the 22nd that it had signed this long-term supply contract with AstraZeneca. Accordingly, Samsung Biologics will conduct large-scale commercial production of AstraZeneca’s biopharmaceuticals. The contract amount could increase to $545.6 million (KRW 634.9 billion) depending on future customer demand. Samsung Biologics plans to produce the biopharmaceuticals at its third plant, which has the world’s largest production capacity (CAPA) for a single facility.

With this, Samsung Biologics has achieved a total of 11 CMO and contract development organization (CDO) agreements this year. Starting with Immunomedics in the U.S. in April, followed by GSK in May, two pharmaceutical companies based in Switzerland in June, four companies in July including Silag GmbH, Lundbeck, Cytodine, and a U.S.-based pharmaceutical company, two companies in August including a U.S.-based pharmaceutical company and GSK, and AstraZeneca in September, the total contract amount reached KRW 1.8127 trillion.

Through this contract, AstraZeneca plans to expand its production capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region and actively collaborate with Korean bio-health specialized companies. Kim Tae-han, CEO of Samsung Biologics, said, "We are very pleased that Samsung Biologics and AstraZeneca have become new partners," adding, "We will do our best to satisfy our customers through Samsung Biologics’ world-class state-of-the-art production facilities and innovative solutions."

Pam Cheng, Senior Vice President and Head of Global Operations and IT at AstraZeneca, said, "Through this new long-term partnership with Samsung Biologics, we have strengthened our production capabilities, enabling us to supply existing and new biopharmaceuticals to patients worldwide with high quality and greater speed."