November 21, 2024

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Lotte Biologics CEO Lee Won-jik (left) and Sebastian Arana, Executive Vice President of Merck Global Process Solutions Business, pose for a photo at a signing ceremony, held at Lotte World Tower, Monday. (Lotte Biologics)

Lotte Biologics, a South Korean contract development and manufacturing organization, and Merck’s process solutions arm signed a letter of intent for a strategic partnership in biopharmaceutical manufacturing and process development, the company said Friday.

Under the partnership, Lotte Biologics plans to purchase raw materials and solutions from Merck for its development and production of pharmaceutical products in the future.

“Lotte Biologics expects its partnership with Merck will help it establish a stable supply chain system for raw materials,” an official from Lotte Biologics said.

Merck is currently building a new bioprocessing production center in Daejeon. This week, Merck Life Science announced that it started to build a new bioprocessing production center in Daejeon, in which it will invest around 300 million euros ($325 million) -- the company’s largest investment in the Asia-Pacific region.

Merck’s raw materials and solutions will be utilized when Lotte Biologics’ commercial operation of its first plant in Korea begins. Lotte Biologics started the construction of its first biomanufacturing plant in the Lotte Bio Campus in Songdo in March last year. The company will begin commercial production in 2027. Lotte Biologics plans to add two more plants in Lotte Bio Campus in the future.

"This collaboration with Merck is significant as it represents a win-win strategy that will help South Korea become a global leader in biopharmaceuticals beyond Songdo and Daejeon. We will strive to make Lotte Biologics a key player in the global CDMO market through this active partnership with Merck," Lotte Biologics CEO Lee Won-jik said.

Through Merck, Lotte Biologics will also help its biotech partners secure raw materials. Within its biomanufacturing complex, the company plans to provide a research environment to local biotech firms and provide them with one-stop services for the development of drugs.

"With decades of presence in this fast-growing region, we are committed to driving scientific progress that impacts life and health. We are proud of the impact we are creating in South Korea and look forward to strengthening our collaboration with Lotte Biologics," Sebastian Arana, executive vice president of Merck Global Process Solutions Business, said.

Meanwhile, the latest agreement is Lotte Biologics' second partnership with Merck Group. In 2022, Lotte Biologics signed a memorandum of understanding with Merck Millipore Sigma for the expansion of the Syracuse Bio Campus plant, manufacturing solutions and workforce training in the US.

By Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)