As Evonik aims to grow its presence in the contract manufacturing and development industry, the company has opened the doors to a new lipid manufacturing facility in Hanau, Germany.
Lipids produced at the plant will be used for RNA drugs and gene therapies aimed at infectious diseases, cancer and more, the German chemical specialist said in a statement. The facility supports production of “all types of custom and proprietary lipids," Evonik added.
As Evonik notes, lipids are the "building blocks" of living cells and are used in advanced drug delivery systems. They're "critical" for mRNA based drugs, according to the company.
The new digs in Hanau are the latest addition to the company's manufacturing network amid a growth spurt. Last June, the company announced plans to build a $220 million U.S. facility in Lafayette, Indiana, to produce lipids for mRNA vaccines. The U.S. government chipped in up to $150 million through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. That plant is expected to be operational by 2025.
Evonik’s lipids gained widespread uptake during the pandemic thanks to their importance for Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Elsewhere, Evonik is helping Takeda spinoff Phathom Pharmaceuticals produce vonoprazan, otherwise known as Voquenza, under a deal the companies signed back in October.
Evonik is aiming to substantially increase its presence in the life sciences field by 2030. The company has set a goal of investing more than 3 billion euros ($3.16 billion) in next-generation solutions to achieve its goals, the company said in its 2022 earnings release.