Value context and insight. lkm@koreatimes.co.kr
UNICEF, LG Chem ink $200 mil. contract to supply vaccines for 80 mil. infants
Eupolio, a polio vaccine, manufactured by LG Chem / Courtesy of LG Chem.
By Lee Kyung-min
By Lee Kyung-min
LG Chem has signed a $200 million (261 billion won) contract with the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), to supply vaccines for up to a combined 80 million infants worldwide, the firm said Tuesday. The international agency under the United Nations is responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children.
Of particular significance is the fact that the firm won over 30 percent of the order total, cementing its place as a global leader in the manufacturing of vaccines for infants.
Half of the supplies are for Eupolio, a polio vaccine. The other half is for Eupenta, a vaccine that can help treat five diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), hepatitis B and Haemophilus influenzae type b.
Polio, or infantile paralysis, is an acute viral infectious disease of the nervous system. Newly infected persons typically experience symptoms of fever, headache, nausea, fatigue and muscle pains and spasms. In less than 1 percent of cases, those symptoms are followed by a more serious and permanent muscular paralysis.
Under the plan, the LG affiliate will supply the Eupolio vaccine at a total value of $100 million between 2024 and 2025, whereas Eupenta ― for the same amount ― will be provided between 2023 and 2027.
The global contract will proceed without delay, as underpinned by the LG affiliate's years of investment in manufacturing facilities, which have expanded to produce over 60 million doses of Eupolio every year.
The LG affiliate plans to manufacture Eupolio-based polio vaccines that can help treat six diseases, thereby solidifying its presence and brand value as the most trusted infant vaccine supplier.
“The U.N. organization order goes to show how LG Chem's vaccine manufacturing capabilities are recognized around the world,” an LG Chem official said. “We will continue to make great contributions to preventing infant diseases around the world.”
The two vaccines are the latest to have made the World Health Organization Prequalification list, more than a decade after Euvax, a hepatitis B vaccine, made the list in 1996. Eupenta was listed in 2016 and Eupolio in 2020.
With a robust three-decade track record in the infant vaccine field, the LG affiliate saw 20 percent year-on-year corporate growth last year.