Samsung Biologics, one of the world’s largest contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs), unveiled an ambitious growth plan at the 2023 J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, which took place in San Francisco January 9-12. After reaching 3 trillion South Korean won (about $2.37 billion) in revenue for 2022, the CDMO is looking to take the next steps toward its goal of becoming a top-tier global pharmaceutical company with a portfolio that extends beyond CDMO services.
“The strategies outlined today will not only drive growth this year but also build sustainable foundations for the long term,” said Samsung president and CEO John Rim. “We will continue to grow, ultimately to provide maximum satisfaction to our clients and to our investors.”
Rim’s growth plan for the CDMO is based on three pillars: a diversified portfolio, increased manufacturing capacity, and an expanded geographic footprint.
At the conference, which connects health care industry leaders with members of the investment community, he recapped Samsung Biologics’ progress on these goals in 2022 and outlined the agenda to pursue new strategies related to each pillar in 2023.
Samsung Biologics’ 2022 Highlights
In March 2022, Samsung Biologics acquired Samsung Bioepis, a biosimilars company founded in 2012 as a joint venture with Biogen. The CDMO acquired Biogen’s 50% stake for $2.3 billion.
At the time of the acquisition, Rim remarked that it was “a significant milestone for Samsung Biologics in our continued venture into the biosimilar business and accelerating biosimilar growth.”
A recent McKinsey & Company report projected that the market for biosimilars, cost-efficient medicines designed to mimic the active components of biologic counterparts, will double in size to more than $30 billion by 2025 and reach over $60 billion by 2030.
With its investment in Samsung Bioepis, Samsung Biologics is positioning itself on the leading edge of this fast-growing market, and it’s already begun to see results. In June 2022, just two months after the CDMO’s full acquisition of Samsung Bioepis, it launched a ranibizumab biosimilar, which is used to treat macular degeneration and other macular conditions. This ophthalmology biosimilar was added to Samsung Bioepis offerings of successful oncology and immunology therapeutics, and the company is pursuing a pipeline that includes biosimilars for endocrinology, gastroenterology, and hematology.
Samsung Biologics also launched a new mRNA vaccine production suite in 2022. While it had already developed mRNA drug product capabilities, providing aseptic fill/finish services for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine, the new suite enables the CDMO to offer drug substance services as well, producing the mRNA required for vaccines in-house. The goal of developing this end-to-end approach was to facilitate efficient mRNA vaccine production for clients with varying needs and scaling requirements.
In July, Samsung Biologics demonstrated the potential of this approach, producing 650 grams of mRNA at a titer of 12 grams per liter for GreenLight Biosciences’ COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The progression from initial technology transfer to commercial-scale production was completed in only seven months.
Amid its diversification and expansion efforts, Samsung Biologics remained committed to a focus on sustainability in 2022. It released an ESG report detailing its progress towards a goal of achieving net-zero emissions across its supply chain, and it was recognized with several awards, including the Sustainable Markets Initiative’s Terra Carta Seal. The CDMO was also added to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for the second consecutive year and was actively involved in several sustainability initiatives, including the SMI, RE100, the Carbon Disclosure Project, and Frontier 1.5D.
Multidimensional CDMO Growth Plans
Samsung is planning to build on its 2022 growth in the new year. This includes continuing to offer industry-leading antibody development and manufacturing services. Rim noted that the CDMO launched two new antibody platforms, S-DUAL for bispecific antibodies and DEVELOPICK for early-stage molecule screening, and will utilize these platforms to meet a range of antibody needs for its partners going forward.
In addition to completing the construction of Plant 4, which began partial operations in October 2022 and is slated to be fully operational in 2023 with a capacity of 240,000 liters, Samsung Biologics will begin construction on its second Bio Campus, which will be 30% larger than its current campus at 357,000 square acres. The new campus will include an innovation center to facilitate collaboration with biotech startups. Rim also noted that Samsung Biologics will continue to use its Life Science Fund, created in partnership with Samsung C&T, to invest in promising biotech companies in 2023.
“We will maintain our lead in manufacturing capacity with the full completion of Plant 4 in mid-2023, and invest another 7.5 trillion won in Bio Campus 2,” said Rim.