Following a string of vaccine expansion projects last year, Sanofi is eyeing a new path to potentially grow the reach of its immunizations, this time in Vietnam.
Sanofi and the Vietnam Vaccine Company (VNVC) have kicked off a vaccine production technology transfer with the goal to eventually manufacture certain Sanofi vaccines in-country, VNVC said in a Vietnamese-language press release on Monday.
As part of the tie-up—which was celebrated at an event attended by Vietnamese and French presidents Luong Cuong and Emmanuel Macron—Sanofi will also help VNVC with human resources training and quality management linked to vaccine research and production.
VNVC debuted in 2017 and operates vaccination centers around Vietnam using imported shots from major pharma players.
From Sanofi’s perspective, the collaboration “aims to explore opportunities for local vaccine production in Vietnam as part of our ongoing commitment to improving vaccine access in the country,” a company spokesperson told Fierce Pharma over email.
“Discussions are ongoing, and we will share further information as soon as a concrete milestone can be communicated,” the spokesperson added.
Aside from bolstering Vietnam’s autonomy to quickly respond to future health emergencies, the deal is also expected to build “a solid legal basis for bilateral activities in health, pharmaceuticals and vaccines” between Vietnam and France, VNVC said.
The news comes as VNVC revealed that it will also be building a new 26,000-square-meter (279,862-square-foot) vaccine production facility in Vietnam’s southern Long An province.
The upcoming plant has been girded by an initial investment of 2 trillion Vietnamese dong (around $77.2 million), VNVC added. Once complete, the facility is expected to crank out around 100 million vaccine doses per year, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing comments from the organization.
While the deal is still in its infancy, the tech transfer represents yet another effort by Sanofi to expand its already massive vaccine business.
Last year alone, Sanofi opened Canada’s largest vaccine factory at its campus in Toronto, completed the buildout of a modular vaccine and biologics plant in France and debuted a similar modular plant in Singapore.
Together, the trio of facilities represents nearly $2 billion in manufacturing investments by Sanofi. Sanofi makes a wide range of vaccines to protect against conditions such as influenza, meningitis, tetanus, pertussis and others.