The news of the temporary slowdown in deliveries of BioNTech / Pfizer vaccines had irritated several European governments.
German laboratory BioNTech announced on Wednesday that it was starting production of its coronavirus vaccine, designed with Pfizer, at a new plant based in Marburg, central Germany.
This plant will in particular produce mRNA, the active ingredient of this vaccine with which the vaccine campaign in France began.
The German biotechnology company claims that "a single batch of mRNA, at its current size, is sufficient to produce eight million doses of vaccine".
“After the initial production of this active ingredient, it is purified and concentrated”, then transferred to “production partners” who package and sterilize it.
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Before being distributed, however, this production must still receive the green light from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in February and March, specifies BioNTech.
"The first vaccines produced at the Marburg site should be shipped in early April," predicts the laboratory.
Currently, the main factory manufacturing this vaccine for European customers is located in Puurs, Belgium.
"Once fully operational, the new BioNTech facility will be one of the largest mRNA production sites in Europe, with an annual production capacity of up to 750 million doses of our COVID-19 vaccine," argue BioNTech and Pfizer.
BioNTech plans to produce “up to 250 million doses of BNT162b2 there during the first half of 2021”.
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"We continue to work with Pfizer on a series of measures aimed at meeting global demand," assures BioNTech, confirming its goal of delivering two billion doses of vaccine against Covid-19 in 2021. The German laboratory had announced the 1st February accelerated deliveries to the European Union of the vaccine, promising up to 75 million additional doses in the second quarter.
