Vaccine maker Adimmune Corp (國光生技) on Friday last week said that its board of directors approved plans to expand production capacity to meet rising demand.
The company said that it would spend NT$700 million (US$22.7 million) to purchase new equipment for a second production line for injectables to meet rising demand in the US, Europe and Southeast Asian countries.
Construction of the production line is to begin in the final quarter this year, with the facility expected to be certified and go online in 2022, raising output fourfold, Adimmune said.
Vaccine shipments to the US have surged from 600,000 units last year to 4 million units this year, while clients have called for 8 million units next year, Adimmune chairman Steve Chan (詹啟賢) said.
As the company is already running at capacity, it had to turn away orders to prioritize needs in Taiwan, Chan said, adding that vaccine production requires significant lead time.
Earlier this year, Chan said that Flublok, a flu vaccine developed by US-based drug maker Protein Science Corp, has been well received in the US market.
Adimmune handles Flublok’s formulation, filling and packaging, while vaccines made at the Taiwanese company’s plants have been approved for sale in the US after passing US Food and Drug Administration inspections.
A scandal involving substandard vaccines in China has led to more inquiries about Adimmune’s products from Chinese customers, company spokesperson Peter Pan (潘飛) said.
Shares in Adimmune closed 3.05 percent lower at NT$19.05 in Taipei trading yesterday. They have declined 5.69 percent this year to date.
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