Moderna, a clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines, and Laboratorios Farmacéuticos Rovi, S.A., a pan-European pharmaceutical company specializing and engaging in the research, development, contract manufacturing and marketing of small molecules and biological specialties, have formed a collaboration for large-scale, commercial fill-finish manufacturing of Moderna’s mRNA vaccine candidate against COVID-19 (mRNA-1273) at ROVI’s facility in Madrid, Spain.
 
As part of the agreement, ROVI will provide vial filling and packaging capacity by procuring a new production line and equipment for compounding, filling, automatic visual inspection and labeling to support production of hundreds of millions of doses of the vaccine candidate intended in principle to supply markets outside of the U.S. starting in early 2021. ROVI will also hire additional staffing required to support manufacturing operations and production.
 
“Moderna is committed to helping address the COVID-19 crisis. We are pleased to partner with ROVI to potentially supply hundreds of millions of doses of finished mRNA-1273, once approved, and help address the need for a vaccine against COVID-19 around the world,” said Juan Andres, chief technology operations and quality officer, Moderna. “ROVI’s experience as a global manufacturer of drug product and expertise in fill-finish will be an important partnership for us to establish dedicated supply chains that can meet the needs of different countries and regions. I am delighted to be working with ROVI again.”
 
Juan López-Belmonte, chief executive officer, ROVI, said, “We are very happy about the collaboration with Moderna, whose vaccine against COVID-19 is one of the frontrunners in the race to solve this health crisis. We would be thrilled for ROVI to form part of the solution to this pandemic that is affecting all of us and to support Moderna in supplying it on a wide scale. Our proven experience and capabilities as a toll manufacturer of injectables has allowed us to reach this agreement, which would help strengthen our manufacturing area and would, in all probability, provide us with a significant growth opportunity in the area. Likewise, I would like to thank the Ministry of Health and the Spanish Medicines Agency for making themselves available and providing their support, which has been of fundamental importance, during this entire process.”