Vax firm seeks 50% capital subsidy from state for facility expansion

Bhubaneswar: A vaccine production company, Sapigen Biologix, which has already set up a manufacturing facility in the city, showed interest in expanding its facility by investing an additional amount of Rs 1,000 crore. This expansion will further enable vaccine development for chikungunya, zika, non-typhoidal salmonella (NTS), and shigella-like diseases.The company recently wrote to the Odisha chief secretary, seeking 50% capital subsidy for the proposed additional investment towards the expansion of the facility in the state. The company established a large-scale, state-of-the-art human vaccine manufacturing facility in Bhubaneswar, the only such facility in eastern India.“Our current investment stands at Rs 1,500 crore, and we will shortly commence manufacturing malaria and cholera vaccines. Two additional biopharma companies initiated projects in Odisha based on our recommendations, demonstrating the state’s growing credibility as a biotech destination,” read the company’s letter.The company is now planning an additional investment of Rs 1,000 crore for developing and producing multiple additional vaccines. These are high-risk, long-gestation projects with a development cycle of 4 to 5 years, requiring early establishment of GMP-certified biosafety level (BSL) 2/3 facilities even before clinical trials begin.The company said the facility will help in employment creation in Bhubaneswar and attract more biotech companies to come to the state. “While the Odisha Biotech Policy-2024 provides a 30% capital incentive, we request an additional 20% to achieve a total of 50% capital subsidy for further investments for expansion of manufacturing facilities in the city,” read the company’s letter.The science and technology department, in a letter to the managing director of the Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation (IPICOL), Odisha, urged the latter to examine the feasibility of the request made by the company.