Moderna in advanced discussion to double COVID-19 vaccines for Europe

"We are scaling up our manufacturing capacity to address the global health crisis with a vaccine that is widely available once approved for use."

By SARAH CHEMLA
A sign marks the headquarters of Moderna Therapeutics, which is developing a vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., May 18, 2020 (photo credit: REUTERS/BRIAN SNYDER)
A sign marks the headquarters of Moderna Therapeutics, which is developing a vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., May 18, 2020
(photo credit: REUTERS/BRIAN SNYDER)
Moderna would give the European Commission the option to double its quantity of COVID-19 vaccines, bringing the total amount of available doses to 160 million.
The US-based biotechnology company, confirmed on Monday advanced talks were conducted with the European Commission to supply another 80 million doses of Moderna’s potential vaccine against COVID-19, called mRNA-1273, as part of the European Commission’s goal to secure early access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for Europe.
“We appreciate the European Commission’s collaboration in helping to ensure that Europeans will have access to a safe and effective vaccine, and we are proud that the European Commission has recognized the potential of our mRNA vaccine technology. European partners, investors and citizens have been part of Moderna from the beginning of the company and have played an important role in Moderna’s progress,” said Stéphane Bancel, CEO of Moderna.
In Europe, Moderna is working with Lonza of Switzerland and ROVI of Spain, on a dedicated supply chain for manufacturing and fill-finish of its products outside the United States.
“We are scaling up our international manufacturing capacity outside the United States with our strategic partners, Lonza in Switzerland and ROVI in Spain, to be in a position to address this global health emergency with a vaccine that is widely available once approved for use," added Bancel.
The discussions between Moderna and the European Commission aim at ensuring the accessibility of Moderna's vaccine to European member states while Phase 3 of the mRNA-1273 study began on July 27 with about 30,000 participants, and is on track to be completed in September.