New vaccine facility a shot in the arm for Australians

Australia will be at the top of the vaccine queue for future pandemics as the new Melbourne facility opens.

Transcript

00:00With the opening of today's Moderna facility here in Melbourne, we secure yet another tool

00:05in that toolkit for the next pandemic because unfortunately we do know there will be a next

00:11pandemic.

00:12This facility has the capacity to produce up to 100 million doses of locally made vaccine

00:18in a pandemic response scenario.

00:21It's a really major step forward to helping Australians be protected against future pandemics

00:27while supporting local industry.

00:30With this facility, Australia will be less dependent on imported mRNA vaccines during

00:35a pandemic.

00:36We'll be less vulnerable to the supply disruptions or delays caused by global events, a resurgence

00:42of COVID-19 infections or indeed a new different pandemic.

00:47This is the only mRNA manufacturing facility that will be found in the southern hemisphere

00:53and it means from end to end, the research and the manufacturing capacity here will go

00:58on and produce at full tilt, when the team here are operating at full tilt, up to 100

01:04million vaccines a year.

01:07Then there is also two productions of these vaccines for our community, responding, responding

01:12to the health needs, responding to those viruses and illnesses that can make people very sick.

01:18And finally too, what we're marking here today is another milestone that continues

01:22to cement Melbourne alongside London and Boston as global biotech leaders.