CSL’s Seqirus to build an $800m plant in Victoria

Australian listed CSL’s subsidiary Seqirus  (ASX: CSL)  is building an  $800m flu vaccine facility in Melbourne in 2021 to be ready in 2026.

This investment is on the back of a 10-year deal with the Australian Government to supply flu vaccines for the local population as well as the Q-Fever vaccine and antivenoms for Australian snakes, spiders and marine creatures.

Utilising the cell-based techniques currently used at Seqirus' facility in North Carolina, the Melbourne facility plans to supply domestic and global needs for flu vaccines, both for seasonal and pandemic purposes.

The facility will also produce the company's proprietary adjuvant MF59, which helps improve immune response and is being used in its combined trials for a potential COVID-19 vaccines with the University of Queensland.

CSL chief executive officer and managing director Paul Perreault and Seqirus general manager Stephen Marlow say that  the facility will be an important addition to the Company’s global influenza manufacturing supply chain, and will ensure more than 1,000 science, technology, manufacturing and engineering jobs in Victoria, and a supply chain worth more than $300 million annually.

Victoria's Minister for Industry Support and Recovery, Martin Pakula says that the facility will position Victoria as a global leader in cell-based influenza vaccine production and further boosts the capabilities in R&D, commercialisation and advanced manufacturing.

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