Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced that Moderna's Australian manufacturing facility will be constructed at Monash University.
The prime minister made the announcement with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. Mr Albanese said Moderna will also establish its headquarters and a Regional Research Centre in Victoria.
The Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences was recently announced as the new home of The Victorian mRNA Innovation Hub. The hub is a joint venture between Monash University and the University of Melbourne that is funded by the Victorian government.
The Moderna mRNA manufacturing facility will be constructed to produce up to 100 million vaccine doses every year.
"Once this critical onshore mRNA capability is established, Australia will reduce its dependence on imported mRNA vaccines and our vulnerability to supply disruptions or delays," said the prime minister.
"It will give Australians local and ongoing access to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine - Spikevax - and give us an onshore mRNA manufacturing capability in the event of a new pandemic, such as avian influenza or another new pathogen, vaccine-resistant COVID-19 variants or a global resurgence of infections," he said.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is a once-in-a-generation challenge that gives us a once-in-a-generation opportunity to come back stronger and better than ever,” continued Mr Albanese. “The pandemic has shown us how important local manufacturing capability is to our security and to our health.”
“This agreement means that Victoria will be home to Moderna’s only mRNA manufacturing and finishing centre in the Southern Hemisphere,” added Premier Andrews.