Long-term Domestic Utilization Potential is Positive... Cannot Immediately Resolve Domestic Supply and Demand Issues
[Asia Economy Reporters Seo So-jeong and Lee Chun-hee] Domestic bio company Huons Global is set to undertake contract manufacturing (CMO) of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine 'Sputnik V.'
The production volume could reach up to 100 million doses, raising expectations as a domestic company will directly produce the COVID-19 vaccine through technology transfer. However, the initial batch is expected to be entirely for overseas export, making it unlikely to immediately resolve the domestic vaccine supply emergency.
On the 16th, Huons Global, the holding company of the Huons Group, announced that it had signed a technology transfer agreement with the Russian sovereign wealth fund (RDIF) for the production of the 'Sputnik V' COVID-19 vaccine and will begin pilot production in August.
Huons Global plans to form a consortium with Prestige BioPharma, Humedix, Boram Pharma, and others, leveraging each company's capabilities to establish facilities capable of producing over 100 million doses per month. A Huons Global representative stated, "While the facility construction will enable production of up to 100 million doses, actual production volume will be based on the quantity requested by RDIF," adding, "All doses produced this time will be for overseas export."
The Sputnik V vaccine was the world's first COVID-19 preventive vaccine approved last August and is currently authorized for use in over 60 countries worldwide, including Russia, Iran, Argentina, Algeria, and Hungary. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) also began its review earlier this month.
In February, the world-renowned medical journal The Lancet published Phase 3 clinical trial results showing a preventive efficacy of 91.6% for Sputnik V. Although early approval by Russian authorities sparked safety concerns, recent Phase 3 results have demonstrated its effectiveness, shifting the overall evaluation.
In particular, there is growing optimism that the involvement of a domestic company in COVID-19 vaccine production will positively impact domestic supply and utilization.
Additionally, domestic bio company GL Rapha has formed a consortium centered on its subsidiary Korea Corus, along with seven domestic institutions and companies, to produce the Sputnik V vaccine. Humedix is also participating in this consortium, but it is separate from the Huons Global consortium.
At a briefing the previous day, Baek Young-ha, head of the government-wide vaccine introduction task force, stated, "A domestic pharmaceutical company is in the process of signing a specific contract to produce an overseas-approved vaccine," and "Mass production of overseas-approved vaccines is scheduled to begin domestically from August." Huons Global responded, "We do not know if the company mentioned in the government announcement is us."
However, a variable remains in that the Sputnik V vaccine is a viral vector vaccine developed using an adenovirus vector, similar to the AstraZeneca and Janssen vaccines, which have been associated with rare thrombosis accompanied by thrombocytopenia. Professor Jung Jae-hoon of the Department of Preventive Medicine at Gachon University Gil Medical Center said, "Although the Russian government has denied the possibility of thrombosis with the Sputnik V vaccine, verification is necessary given that the same vector is used."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
