Novartis gets $486M contract for Holly Springs plant

BASEL, Switzerland — Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG said Thursday it has secured a $486 million contract for its flu vaccine plant under construction in Holly Springs.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services granted the eight-year contract to operate a vaccine manufacturing site that could respond to potential pandemics.

Novartis said more than 300 people would work at the plant by 2012. The plant will be used to develop a new flu vaccine using cell cultures. Existing vaccines are derived from eggs, which can take up to nine months to produce and are susceptible to the avian flu virus.

“This HHS contract builds on the strategic investment made by Novartis in vaccines innovation, and reinforces the significant financial and technology investments we have already committed to Holly Springs,” Dr. Andrin Oswald, chief executive of Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics, said in a statement.

The plant will serve a double function, producing vaccine to inoculate people from seasonal flu and adding to U.S. government preparedness against an influenza pandemic. In that event, the plant would aim to produce 150 million doses of vaccine within six months, officials said.

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Justabum, there are no US companies that will make the vaccines. Due to the litigation and sue happy system that we have, the US companies decided to get out of it to avoid the constant harrasment and liability.

chfdcpt
January 16, 2009 8:50 a.m.

for all you idiots out there how can't comprehend what it takes to open a vaccine plant. product doesn't just start flying out the doors when construction is completed. it takes a few more years of qualifications, validations, testings, inspections, etc. all this is saying is they got a government contract to make additional products.

tobis19341
January 15, 2009 8:04 p.m.

This place has been under construction for close to a year if not longer. I've worked there a few times.

bomanicous
January 15, 2009 7:09 p.m.

Are there no American companies who could do this work?

Justabum
January 15, 2009 6:29 p.m.

Yes...this does sound misleading. The plant news is 2 years old. It just happens that Novartis has gotten a U.S. contract to sell some of the vaccine that it's going to produce in this plant. This may or may not mean more jobs for Holly Springs...it's not possible to tell from the article.