Moderna to boost COVID-19 Vaccine Making Capacity

Last updated Apr 29, 2021

The U.S. drugmaker, Moderna Inc said it is boosting manufacturing capacity for its COVID-19 vaccine and expects to make up to 3 billion doses in 2022.

Moderna president, Stephen Hoge said in an interview on Thursday, it is increasing its expectations for 2021 vaccine production to between 800 million and 1 billion shots, raising the bottom of its range from 700 million.

“As we look forward to next year, we just see so much need for primary vaccine, we are hearing it all over the world, and also boosters.

“So depending upon how much the ordering that happens is third doses or pediatric doses at 50 micrograms, we could see up to 3 billion doses,” he added.

Moderna had previously said it expected to make 1.4 billion shots in 2022.

Moderna also said new data suggests its shots can be stored safely for up to three months at refrigerator temperatures, making it easier to get them to hard to reach areas that may not have access to freezers.

“That might be a breakthrough that really matters in 2022 in Africa and across lower and middle income countries,” Hoge said.

Moderna expects to double output at a drug substance plant in Switzerland run by Lonza Group AG and boost production in a Spain-based facility owned by Laboratorios Farmaceuticos ROVI SA more than two-fold. U.S. plants will also raise output by more than 50%.

Moderna’s two-dose vaccine uses messenger-RNA technology that programs cells to build immunity to the novel coronavirus.

It would begin making investments this year and that production boosts would start in late 2021 and carry into early 2022.

Moderna said it is in advanced talks for additional deals with other manufacturers to help make its shots. Moderna earlier this month announced shot production deals with Sanofi SA and Catalent Inc.

The company would need regulatory sign-off to start shipping vaccine at the higher, refrigerator-level temperatures.

Kamila/Reuters