Groundbreaking R1.5bn investment in Biovac boosts vaccine production

The “quasi-equity” €75 million investment will also enable an additional $20m senior loan

- EDWARD WEST

BIOVAC builds Africa's first end-to-end multi-vaccine manufacturing site with backing from the European Investment Bank Group, European Commission and the International Finance Corporation.

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BIOVAC, based in Cape Town, will become Africa's first multi-vaccine manufacturing site after a R1.47 billion investment by the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group, the financing arm of the European Union, the European Commission and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

The “quasi-equity” €75 million investment will also enable an additional $20m senior loan, as well as further senior financing from the IFC, a statement said Thursday. The investment is backed by a European Commission EFSD+ guarantee under the Human Development Accelerator (HDX), part of the EU's Global Gateway strategy.

The EFSD+ guarantee acts as a safety net for lenders, covering potential losses if projects fail. In blended finance operations, the EU combines a small grant contribution with loans to attract additional public and private funding, max-imising the impact of projects.

“We are proud to partner with the European Commission, EIB Group and IFC on this transformative greenfield project - a state-of-the-art multi-vaccine facility. Expanding local vaccine development and end-to-end manufacturing on African soil for global supply has always been Biovac’s vision, and this funding enables us to accelerate it? said Biovac CEO Morena Makhoana.