Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
EXCLUSIVE Moderna plans to build manufacturing facilities in Korea
People wait in a line to be vaccinated against COVID-19 at a center in Seoul, May 3. Yonhap
By Baek Byung-yeul
By Baek Byung-yeul
U.S. biotechnology firm Moderna has chosen Korea as its base to produce COVID-19 vaccines for Asian countries, according to multiple government sources, Wednesday. Amid the administration's ongoing vaccination efforts, attracting the U.S. firm is expected to help allay concerns about securing an adequate supply of COVID-19 vaccines.
“Moderna recently expressed its intention to purchase land on Yeongjong Island, an hour away from Incheon International Airport, and its CEO Stephane Bancel is expected to visit Cheong Wa Dae as early as this weekend or May 18 at the latest,” a high-ranking government official told The Korea Times asking for anonymity. Moon will fly to Washington late next week for a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House, May 22 (KST).
Another official backed up the statement saying the Moderna CEO's visit could go ahead as the interests of both sides are aligned.
“Moderna thinks its vaccine production facilities in the U.S. are insufficient for supplying its COVID-19 vaccine throughout Asia, and so is seeking to improve its manufacturing capability. The firm's intention is matched with President Moon Jae-in's plan to make Korea the manufacturing hub for COVID-19 vaccines in Asia,” he said.
The U.S. biotech firm is producing its COVID-19 vaccine using messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. The vaccine creates spike proteins similar to those on the surface of the coronavirus that causes the disease and these trigger an immune response in the vaccinated person and the production of antibodies.
A vial of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine / AFP-Yonhap
Currently, there are two vaccines using mRNA technology ― one from Moderna and the other from Pfizer-BioNTech ― available and these are known to have a higher efficacy rate than other vaccines produced using standard methods. Since Korea has relied only on importing vaccines, concerns have been raised about securing enough mRNA vaccines. In December, 2020, the government signed a contract with Moderna for enough vaccine to inoculate 20 million people by June.
The second government official also claimed Moderna would invest a “few billion dollars” in building its own manufacturing plant here given the many barriers to transferring the mRNA technology to a domestic company.
“Korea's biotechnology is lagging behind that of advanced countries and no domestic firms have the experience to develop a vaccine using mRNA technology. This means there are virtually no local companies with the facilities and capabilities to meet Moderna's needs,” the official added.
Moderna's mRNA COVID-19 vaccine is undergoing a licensing review procedure here. On May 10, a panel under the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said the company's vaccine showed more than a 94 percent efficacy rate and was eligible for use.
The panel's review is the first step in three evaluations before the ministry gives final approval. It said its members reviewed clinical trial data on 28,207 participants, which showed the vaccine had a 94.1 percent efficacy in preventing COVID-19.
To address the spread of the virus, East Asian countries are looking to get vaccine makers to build manufacturing facilities amid mounting concerns over vaccine supply.
Chinese pharmaceutical company Fosun Pharma recently agreed to launch a joint venture with German company BioNTech to build a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine manufacturing facility that is capable of supplying up to 1 billion doses a year.
Japan's largest drug maker Takeda Pharmaceutical also said it plans to produce about 250 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by U.S. biotechnology company Novavax.
The Korean government also has gone all-out to secure as many vaccines as possible. In addition to of Moderna's production facility, President Moon had a meeting with Novavax CEO Stanley Erck to discuss vaccine cooperation last month. Korea already has an advance purchase agreement for 40 million doses of the Novavax vaccine.