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Darmstadt (dpa) - The pharmaceutical and chemical group Merck has expanded its production of lipids for the Mainz corona vaccine manufacturer Biontech.
"We brought forward orders in the second quarter and will continue to expand our deliveries in the second half of the year in order to meet the high demand for urgently needed lipids for Biontech and our other customers," said the new Merck boss Bélen Garijo of the German press Agency.
"We have turned the house upside down for this," said the Spaniard (60), who will head the Darmstadt company from May 1 and thus become the first sole head of a Dax group. Merck has significantly expanded its lipid production at its Darmstadt headquarters and in Schaffhausen (Switzerland). Teams of experts from both companies are in constant contact. Merck and Biontech announced the deepened partnership in February.
Lipids are used in the manufacture of the corona vaccine, which Biontech distributes with its US partner Pfizer.
The messenger substance of the mRNA vaccine is packed in a kind of envelope made of lipids.
These fat-like molecules are important so that the active ingredients of the vaccine can be released in the body.
The specialty chemicals group Evonik is one of the few other companies that also supply lipids to Biontech.
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In the meantime, Merck plans to vaccinate its own workforce as soon as enough vaccine is available.
On May 3, a pilot project of the Hessian state government will start at the Darmstadt site, said Garijo.
"We are ready, based on our experience of giving thousands of our employees the annual flu shot."
Merck employs a good 58,000 people worldwide, around 12,000 of them in the Darmstadt area.
Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) had announced that company doctors would be involved in the vaccination campaign from June.
But there were always voices from the business world to prefer this step.
Company doctors vaccinate in pilot projects at chemical giant BASF and VW.
According to Garijo, Corona will keep the world busy for a long time.
"We have to learn to deal with the pandemic," said the manager.
"The virus shows the vulnerability of our world."
But Germany is well prepared with the highest number of intensive care beds in Europe.
She is optimistic that the pandemic can be contained with ongoing vaccinations.
"Who would have thought that after a year we would have a vaccine?"
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It is now necessary to further develop the vaccine against new variants and possibly to refresh vaccinations every year.
At the same time, Garijo appealed to skeptics to get vaccinated.
"Some may have personal concerns, but vaccination and herd immunity are key for the whole population."
Doctor Garijo, who until recently headed the pharmaceutical division at Merck, is replacing Stefan Oschmann, who was on the management board for ten years.
Meanwhile, the group bought the laboratory equipment supplier Sigma-Aldrich and the US semiconductor supplier Versum for billions.
The group is now benefiting from research on corona vaccines and the great need for microchips in digitization.
The Darmstadt-based company supplies more than 50 corona vaccine developers worldwide with, for example, disposable bags, membranes and filters for vaccine production.
The high demand spurred the group, which achieved sales of 17.5 billion euros last year.
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During her time at the top, Merck will operate “very active portfolio management”, announced Garijo.
"We are not ruling out large, transformative acquisitions from 2022, but will more likely focus on smaller to medium-sized complementary acquisitions of innovative technologies."
Since 2007, the company, which is 70 percent owned by the Merck family, has moved almost 50 billion euros in business purchases and sales and has increased its market value significantly.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210429-99-396036 / 2
Profile of Garijo at Merck