Moderna deliveries of COVID-19 vaccine to EU and EEA member started on January 11

Moderna Switzerland GmbH, the International Operations headquarters of Moderna, a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines, provided a distribution update for the COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna in the European Union and the EEA Member States, Norway and Iceland, including the beginning of deliveries of the vaccine on Monday, January 11, 2021.

All shipments of the COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna will be conducted by Kuehne+Nagel, a world-leading logistics company, and will originate from its centralized pharma hub in Europe. Vaccine shipments will be delivered to one pre-agreed central location within each Member State, at which point Member States will coordinate national distribution.

Dan Staner, Vice President and Head of region EMEA, said: “This is a really exciting milestone, and we’reproud of the role Moderna’s vaccine will play in tackling this pandemic in Europe. Distribution across the European Union is one of the largest logistical undertakings that Moderna has faced since starting this platform ten years ago. I am in awe of the dedicated team that has got us here, and I am indebted to all the partners, suppliers and the European Commission for their help and support in achieving this important milestone.”

“This is an important day for Europe and its citizens in the fight against COVID-19,” said Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer of Moderna. “The Moderna team has worked tirelessly to deliver a vaccine with 94% efficacy in less than 12 months since the virus emerged. This may be the first medicine that we have brought to Europe, but we are working on many more – such as vaccines against cytomegalovirus and the flu, to help protect even more people.”

Manufacturing of the COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna vaccine drug substance is performed by Lonza at its site in Switzerland, with aseptic drug product manufacturing and fill-finish performed by ROVI in Spain.

Additional aseptic drug product manufacturing and fill-finish support will be provided by Recipharm in France within the first half of 2021.

On December 18, 2020, the European Commission exercised its option to order an additional 80 million doses of Moderna’s vaccine against COVID-19, bringing its confirmed order commitment to 160 million doses in 2021.

The European Commission granted a conditional marketing authorization (CMA) for COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna on January 6, 2021, based upon the recommendation of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for use of the COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna for active immunization to prevent COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus in individuals 18 years of age and older. To date, COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna has also been authorized for distribution in the United States, Canada, Israel, and the United Kingdom.

Marketing authorizations have also been granted by Iceland and Norway.