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EUR15 million to support new-generation influenza vaccines
Russian inventors in partnership with international pharmaceutical group
A 7½-year, €15 million loan by the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development will fund the construction of a plant to manufacture influenza
vaccine that combines the latest achievements of the Russian and western
scientific research and development.
The project brings together a Russian niche pharmaceutical player, NPO
Petrovax Pharm, and Solvay Pharmaceuticals, a leading supplier of influenza
vaccines. The new Russian plant will use Solvay’s cell-culture antigen
technology, which eliminates dependence on chicken eggs in the manufacturing
process, and Petrovax’s immune stimulant, Polioxidonium.
The two firms’ researchers will be combining their efforts to develop new
types of vaccines. The new anti-flu vaccine to be produced by NPO Petrovax
Pharm at its greenfield plant near Moscow will be the first in the world to
combine antigens with an immune stimulant, using a process invented by the
highly regarded immunology and bio-chemistry scientists who founded the
Russian firm.
The plant will be situated 15 km south of Moscow in the Podolsk region and
will have a production capacity of 20 million vaccine doses a year for the
Russian and CIS markets. The market for flu vaccines in Russia is estimated at
16 million doses a year, and has been growing at an annual rate of 20 percent.
The Brussels-based Solvay, with 50 years of experience in the influenza
vaccine market, will assist Petrovax in all aspects of the project, from
development of the vaccine to registration, manufacturing, marketing and
personnel training. During the construction phase, Solvay will supply its
know-how in project implementation and management support.
This is a good example of efficient cooperation between a Russian niche player
and a reputable foreign strategic investor, said EBRD First Vice President
Noreen Doyle. This project highlights what can be done by combining efforts in
the field of scientific research and new technologies and thus sends an
important signal to the rest of the industry, Ms Doyle added.
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