American pharmaceutical giant says plant will be located somewhere in greater Montreal area The American pharmaceutical giant Moderna confirmed Friday that it has chosen the greater Montreal area as the location for its new biomanufacturing plant — the company’s first outside of the United States. The $180-million facility is expected to produce 100 million doses of mRNA vaccines per year. “It’s important to have manufacturing in Canada,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at McGill University, standing alongside Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel and Quebec Premier François Legault.
“We are strengthening our own ability to respond to viruses. ”Details on its precise location are still pending. Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne, who was also present, said the company is still in the process of shopping around for potential sites.
Construction for the plant will begin sometime this year and is expected to be completed by 2024.Legault said the plant will better prepare the province for future pandemics by reinforcing domestic supply chains and vaccine autonomy. “We’ve had a hard two years,” he said. “We’ve had to look for masks, medical gowns, and then vaccines. We have learned we are better served by ourselves.” Canada’s biomanufacturing industry has declined, Legault acknowledged, but what remains is centred in Quebec and the Greater Toronto Area, both of whom were in the running for the plant. “Today I’m pleased to announce that Quebec has won the battle for the Moderna facility.”
Source: cbc.ca/news
