5x Investment Compared to Last 5 Years
"Accelerating Efforts to Secure Global Competitiveness"
Advancing Overseas Business & Securing Next-Gen Vaccine Pipeline
Expanding CDMO Business... Big Pharma Contracts Pending
Developing New Platforms Including mRNA
"From now on, the next five years will be a period of active investment that will determine the future of SK Bioscience. We promise to grow quickly and systematically."
On the morning of the 28th, SK Bioscience President Ahn Jae-yong made this statement during a press conference held at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, while announcing a large-scale investment plan. President Ahn explained the reason for deciding on additional investment, saying, "Despite rapid changes in the business environment, we have consistently challenged ourselves with unwavering determination, and we evaluate that our major businesses are progressing smoothly in the targeted direction."
Ahn Jae-yong, CEO of SK Bioscience, is explaining the development process of the first domestic COVID-19 vaccine, 'Skycovione,' at a press conference held on the 13th at SK Eco Hub in Pangyo, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do. [Photo by Ministry of Health and Welfare]
SK Bioscience will invest approximately 2.4 trillion KRW over the next five years to leap into the global top-tier in the vaccine and bio sectors. In particular, it plans to inject 1.2 trillion KRW solely into research and development (R&D) to drive innovative growth in the vaccine and bio industries. The amount decided for this investment is five times the investment made over the past five years.
President Ahn presented detailed strategies for this purpose, including ▲expansion of overseas business ▲strengthening of vaccine business ▲securing new platforms ▲expansion of endemic (periodic infectious disease outbreaks) response portfolio and infrastructure.
Glocalization Approaching Realization... New CMO Orders Imminent
SK Bioscience will first expand its regional presence and CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) business to secure competitiveness in overseas markets.
The mid- to long-term core growth strategy, the 'Glocalization' project, involves transferring SK Bioscience's vaccine capabilities to overseas governments and partners to establish production infrastructure tailored to each region. Currently, active discussions are underway in countries such as the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America, and the company expects contracts to be signed in two or more regions within this year. Through the Glocalization project, SK Bioscience plans to secure a stable supply chain while pioneering sales channels for its self-developed vaccines.
The company is also expanding its CDMO business for various infectious diseases. This aims to enable rapid response to new pandemics and promote equitable vaccine supply, thereby leading public health improvement. SK Bioscience is currently reviewing specific contract terms for contract manufacturing (CMO) with multiple companies and expects to sign contracts with global big pharma as early as the first half of the year. The new CDMO business is also anticipated to expand into business opportunities linked to advanced countries' quarantine policies in the future.
To this end, SK Bioscience plans to utilize a 'pilot plant'?a production facility meeting the world's most stringent current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) standards for excellent pharmaceutical manufacturing and quality control?at the global R&PD center being established in Songdo, Incheon, for the CDMO business. Additionally, it will build networks to expand business further with global big pharma and, in the mid- to long-term, pursue CDMO business not only for existing vaccine platforms but also for new platforms such as messenger RNA (mRNA) and cell and gene therapy (CGT), securing new growth engines.
Expanding Vaccine Pipeline Based on Technological Competence... New Developments
Through overseas market development, SK Bioscience plans to increase the sales scale of its self-developed vaccines from about 44 billion KRW last year to approximately 220 billion KRW next year. SK Bioscience's world-first developed quadrivalent cell-cultured influenza vaccine, 'Skycellflu,' has already been approved in 11 countries worldwide. In addition, it will continue to expand overseas approvals for vaccines such as the shingles vaccine 'Skyzoster' and the chickenpox vaccine 'Skyvaricella.'
The company is accelerating the development of five blockbuster pipelines to boost mid- to long-term growth. Based on a strengthened global cooperation system following the pandemic, the strategy is to develop competitive next-generation vaccines to maximize market success potential. For this, R&D is underway for the advancement and new development of ▲next-generation pneumococcal vaccine ▲human papillomavirus vaccine ▲recombinant shingles vaccine ▲universal COVID vaccine ▲respiratory syncytial virus vaccine.
Securing Growth Engines with New Platforms like 'mRNA'
Business expansion to secure new platforms such as mRNA, which will serve as growth foundations, is also being actively pursued. Since last year, SK Bioscience has continued cooperation with organizations such as the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for mRNA vaccine development. Recently, it completed contracts for the introduction and supply of core technologies for mRNA vaccine development with leading domestic and international companies. Through collaboration with global institutions and companies, SK Bioscience aims to increase the commercialization potential of the mRNA vaccines currently under development and develop vaccines that improve issues such as thermal stability and high cost, which have been pointed out as limitations of existing mRNA vaccines.
Notably, SK Bioscience was selected as the first project for CEPI's support program titled 'Development of RNA Vaccine Platform Technology and Vaccine Library for Emerging Selective Endemic Infectious Diseases,' which targets vaccine developers worldwide, receiving up to 140 million USD (approximately 200 billion KRW) in R&D funding. Based on this, the company is conducting mRNA vaccine platform research for Japanese encephalitis virus and Lassa fever virus.
Responding to Endemic and Next Pandemic... Targeting WHO Approval for 'Skycovione' Within the Year
Packaging work for the COVID-19 vaccine 'Skycovione' is being carried out at SK Bioscience L House in Andong-si, Gyeongbuk. [Photo by SK Bioscience]
As COVID-19 becomes endemic and the possibility of annual vaccination increases, SK Bioscience is also strengthening its foundation to respond to new pandemics.
SK Bioscience is currently verifying the preventive efficacy of its COVID-19 vaccine 'Skycovione' against new variant viruses such as BN.1 and XBB. It plans to secure data on variant prevention as early as the first half of the year and aims to complete approvals in the UK and from the World Health Organization (WHO) within this year. Developed using a recombinant protein subunit method, Skycovione boasts advantages such as ease of distribution and storage and reasonable pricing.
Building on the experience of developing Skycovione, basic research is actively underway for ▲multivalent vaccines targeting various variants ▲universal COVID vaccines targeting sarbecoviruses ▲nasal sprays as medicines for comprehensive virus prevention and treatment.
Infrastructure advancement is also being accelerated. The Songdo R&PD center, which announced the largest-scale facility investment since its launch, broke ground this month and is scheduled for completion in 2025. The company describes the R&PD center as a state-of-the-art facility covering the entire process from research to commercial production. Additionally, the vaccine production facility in Andong, Andong L-House, has secured EU-GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) and US cGMP level facilities, and plans are underway to expand new sites in line with securing new pipelines.
President Ahn said, "The COVID-19 pandemic was a historic moment that showed vaccine and bio companies worldwide how important systematic investment and cooperation across all areas, including R&D, are." He added, "We will do our best to repay the trust of our people by securing global-level competitiveness, contributing to the improvement of human health, and helping South Korea become a strong nation in vaccines and bio."
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