Sanofi plans to invest EUR 610 million ($685 million) to create a new production site and research center for vaccines in France, including to allow it to respond to future pandemic risks.

In keeping with a corporate strategy announced last December (December 2019), Sanofi plans to invest EUR 490 million ($550 million) over a five-year period in vaccine production in France through the creation of what is calls an “Evolutive Vaccine Facility” (EVF) in Neuville sur Saône. The EVF is designed around a central unit housing several fully digital production modules to produce three to four vaccines simultaneously; the modularity allows for production to be prioritized for a specific vaccine based on public health issues.

In addition, Sanofi has committed to investing EUR 120 million ($135 million) to create a new R&D center in France at the Sanofi Pasteur site in Marcy-l’Etoile to develop future vaccines. This digital facility will house specialized laboratories to enable the development of vaccines against emerging diseases and pandemic risks through preclinical research and pharmaceutical and clinical development.

Sanofi says it will cooperate with France and the European Union (EU) on other projects to provide the EU with extra vaccine (EVF extension project) or monoclonal antibody (cell-culture tanks installation and start-up project) production capabilities. The company says these supplementary capabilities can be used by the EU and other pharma companies in the event of a healthcare crisis.

Source: Sanofi