SK bioscience announced that the company broke ground on a major expansion of its vaccine manufacturing plant, L HOUSE, located in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea. The ceremony was attended by Cheol-woo Lee, Governor Gyeongsangbuk -do, South Korea. The new, expanded space will serve as a production base for the next-generation pneumococcal conjugate vaccine candidate 'GBP410' (also known as SP0202), jointly developed by SK bioscience and Sanofi, who are co-investing in the expansion.

Diseases caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae (the pneumococcus) are a major public health problem worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that about a million children succumb to this disease annually, with more than 300,000 being under 5 years of age. In June 2023, SK bioscience and Sanofi announced positive results from its Phase II clinical trials evaluating the safety and immunogenicity of GBP410 in infants, raising optimism for the development of a vaccine with blockbuster potential.

The companies are currently preparing for a global Phase III clinical trial with an expected regulatory submission in 2027. In addition to facility expansion, SK bioscience plans to quickly obtain cGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practice) certification for the new facility, which is the standard for pharmaceutical manufacturing and quality management in the United States, to enhance global competitiveness. L HOUSE has already obtained EU-GMP certification from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in 2021, making it the first domestic vaccine manufacturing facility to do so.

SK bioscience and Sanofi plan to utilize the expanded manufacturing facility to accelerate the successful introduction of GBP410 into the global market, including United States, Europe, and South Korea. The combination of SK bioscience's and Sanofi's expertise is expected to create synergies and drive rapid market share expansion worldwide.