This facility will address the unprecedented global demand for vaccines brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The partnership backs Univercells’s Belgian hub, strengthening pandemic resilience in Europe and supporting global manufacturing autonomy through Univercells’ efforts to launching new production sites around the world based on the company’s innovative biomanufacturing technology.
In collaboration with the European Commission, the EIB Group is on its way to mobilising billions for the COVID-19 response, which it kicked off as soon as the crisis hit to tackle the global health emergency and the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The InnovFin Infectious Diseases Finance Facility (IDFF) was scaled up at the beginning of the outbreak to directly support highly innovative projects that work towards halting the spread of the virus. The programme helps biotech and medtech companies across Europe find solutions for vaccines, cures and diagnostics.
The new venture debt to Univercells backed by the IDFF adds to a previous €20 million operation under the programme signed in October 2019, making it the first repeat loan to be granted under the facility.
This investment will support not only European pandemic readiness, but due to Univercells’ innovative business model of hub-and-spoke, will also support vaccine availability and production autonomy in low and middle-income countries.
Established in 2013, Univercells was founded with a mission: to make biologics accessible to all. By breaking down the barriers of bioproduction and installing affordable units delivering high-quality biologics at an affordable price around the world, Univercells aims to fill existing gaps in global vaccine production.
With the support of the EIB, the company will finance a second facility at its site in Jumet, Belgium, dedicated to COVID-19 vaccines and other contract development and manufacturing operations (CMDO.)
The financing will also support potential COVID-19 vaccine co-development programmes with third parties. Univercells recently announced collaborations in Senegal to support vaccine manufacturing autonomy, which is aligned with programmes like the Team Europe initiative on manufacturing and access to vaccines in Africa. ■