GSK paves way for biopharmaceuticals growth
pharmafile | September 9, 2010 | News story | Research and Development |Â Â GlaxoSmithKline, Lonza, biologicsÂ
GlaxoSmithKline has handed Swiss contract manufacturer Lonza a contract to produce clinical trial batches of five monoclonal antibodies that are currently in phase I and II development.
Under the terms of the deal, the two companies will also collaborate on a project which could see a new “bespoke biopharmaceutical manufacturing plant” built in the UK.
Commenting on the development, Ian Tomlinson, head of biopharma R&D at GlaxoSmithKline, said the agreement “is a critical step in the ongoing and future success of GSK in biopharmaceuticals”, a sector which currently accounts for around 17% of the company’s total product pipeline.
The company’s goal is to “establish a portfolio of biopharmaceutical products that by 2015 consistently exceeds 20% of our R&D pipeline”, added Tomlinson.
In addition to supplying batches for the five products for initial testing, Lonza will also provide “flexible capacity” to respond to future demand for the products, depending on their progression through development and onto the market.
For the Swiss contract manufacturer this deal falls nicely into the category of wide-ranging, multi-product agreements that it has been looking for from its big pharma clients, and an endorsement of its steady investment in biologics capacity in recent years.
It also comes as a timely boost for the CMO, which reported a downturn in its contract manufacturing business in the first half of the year attributed to inventory cutting by its customers and use of internal manufacturing capacity by drugmakers rather than outsourcing partners.
Kepler analyst Florian Gaiser told Reuters that while the new agreement is a positive for Lonza, “significant revenues and profits are two to three years away” given that the products in question are still in early development.
Meanwhile, near-term revenues will also accrue from the technical assistance Lonza will provide on the “design, specification, location and construction” of GSK’s planned biopharmaceutical facility.
Dr Stephen Kutzer, chief operating officer of Lonza Custom Manufacturing, said the deal allows “joint manufacturing asset planning” that will help GSK bring products to the market “in an efficient and timely manner”.
Phil Taylor
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