Takeda to invest additional 74 million euros in Singen, Germany to manufacture the drug substance for its dengue vaccine candidate

Singen, November 26, 2020 - Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502/NYSE:TAK) (“Takeda”) announced that it has started construction of a plant in Singen, Germany, dedicated to manufacture the drug substance for its dengue vaccine candidate (TAK-003) by 2025. Exactly one year after the completion of another production facility, the company is investing an additional 74 million euros in the site, reaching a total investment of over 200 million euros for vaccine production in Singen. This means that everything from the manufacturing of the active drug substance to the production of the vaccine, to the filling and final packaging, to worldwide shipping will take place in one location. Around 100 of almost 1,000 current employees in Singen will work in the new production building in the future.

Construction started on schedule in September 2020. The symbolic groundbreaking ceremony did not take place until November 2 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to site manager Dr. Dirk Oebels, Singen Mayor Bernd Häusler, Claudia Kessler-Franzen, Dr. Gerd Springe from Singen Aktiv, the region’s marketing organization, and Oliver Rahn from the economic development of the city of Singen participated. "We are right on schedule with the new building for production of the active ingredient of the dengue vaccine candidate," said Dr. Dirk Oebels. “We are thus continuing the success story that we began with the opening of the vaccine production plant a year ago. We are also contributing to the great profile of Singen, the state of Baden-Württemberg and Germany as a top location for the manufacture of pharmaceuticals.” Mayor Häusler was impressed by Takeda's commitment: “We see this renewed investment of millions of euros as a commitment to the business and its workforce who perform excellent work here. We have been associated with Takeda for decades here in the Lake Constance region — and the addition of such a large, new plant in Singen makes us proud. We wish the construction team well, and I am looking forward to the opening."

During a virtual media event on November 26, Dr. Thomas Wozniewski, Global Manufacturing & Supply Officer at Takeda; Dr. Dirk Oebels; Gary Dubin, MD, Head Global Medical Office, Global Vaccine Business Unit at Takeda; and Alan Kelly, Project Lead, Vaccines Drug Plant, Singen, discussed the current status of this project, which is important for Takeda globally and especially for the region.

"The manufacturing of our dengue vaccine candidate is a high priority within our global production network," said Thomas Wozniewski. “The production of the vaccine compound strengthens our supply chain and is a step forward to our goal of locating the entire production process for our dengue vaccine candidate in Singen. This will allow us to apply synergies and the many years of know-how of our employees in Singen.”

"This past year has reminded us of the devastation that can be caused by infectious diseases when no vaccine is available, and dengue is no exception,” said Gary Dubin. “Dengue is the fastest spreading mosquito-borne viral disease, causing an estimated 390 million infections and 500,000 hospitalizations each year. Takeda’s investment in the Singen facility is integral to our commitment to addressing the threat of dengue and meeting the demand for our dengue vaccine candidate, if approved.” 

Takeda's Commitment to Vaccines
Vaccines prevent 2 to 3 million deaths each year and have transformed global public health. For the past 70 years, Takeda has supplied vaccines to protect the health of people in Japan. Today, Takeda’s global vaccine business is applying innovation to tackle some of the world’s most challenging infectious diseases, such as dengue, COVID-19, Zika and norovirus. Takeda’s team brings an outstanding track record and a wealth of knowledge in vaccine development, manufacturing and global access to advance a pipeline of vaccines to address some of the world’s most pressing public health needs. For more information, visit www.TakedaVaccines.com.

About Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited
Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502/NYSE:TAK) is a global, values-based, R&D-driven biopharmaceutical leader headquartered in Japan, committed to bringing Better Health for patinets and a Brighter Future for the worlds by translating science into highly-innovative medicines. Takeda focuses its R&D efforts on four therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Diseases, Neuroscience, and Gastroenterology (GI). We also make targeted R&D investments in Plasma-Derived Therapies and Vaccines. We are focusing on developing highly innovative medicines that contribute to making a difference in people's lives by advancing the frontier of new treatment options and leveraging our enhanced collaborative R&D engine and capabilities to create a robust, modality-diverse pipeline. Our employees are committed to improving quality of life for patients and to working with our partners in health care in approximately 80 countries.
For more information, visit https://www.takeda.com.

Contact:           

Takeda Pharmaceuticals International

Alexander Kandt
Head, Communications GMS
Phone: +41 79 893 42 26
Email: [email protected]