Kuehne+Nagel, Moderna finalise agreement for Covid-19 vaccine distribution

January 07, 2021: Moderna and Kuehne+Nagel announced that they have agreed an international supply chain arrangement to provide distribution and storage of the Covid-19 Vaccine Moderna. This announcement follows the granting of conditional marketing authorisation by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for Covid-19 Vaccine Moderna.

On December 6, the European Commission has granted a conditional marketing authorisation (CMA) for Covid-19 Vaccine Moderna, allowing vaccination programmes using the Moderna vaccine to be rolled out across the European Union.

Kuehne+Nagel will support the worldwide distribution of vaccine doses from Moderna’s international supply chain, based in Europe. This includes distribution to markets in Europe, Asia, Middle East and Africa, and parts of the Americas.

“We are proud to be partnering with Kuehne+Nagel from Europe to support the distribution of vaccines to global citizens. Following the recent approvals, this is another step closer to resolving the pandemic and an exciting time for both our companies and everyone involved,” said Dan Staner, vice president head of EMEA region, Moderna.

The arrangement includes distribution and warehousing of the vaccine from Kuehne+Nagel’s pharma hub in Europe. Kuehne+Nagel will use its network of more than 230 operations worldwide to distribute the vaccine via road and air. In Europe alone, the company operates its own fleet of over 200 dedicated pharmaceutical transport vehicles. At all stages of transport and storage, product integrity at the required temperature of -20°C will be maintained.

Robert Coyle, senior vice president, pharma & healthcare, Kuehne + Nagel International, commented, “With today’s announcement, we take on the responsibility to distribute Covid-19 Vaccine Moderna around the world. We have invested in our pharma & healthcare network and our global team of experts for decades – we are ready now, for when it matters the most.”

Kuehne+Nagel’s clinical trial logistics subsidiary, QuickSTAT, has been an integral part of Moderna's vaccine supply chain as well, having supported Phase II and Phase III clinical trial supply logistics in the US.

Kuehne+Nagel has also signed partnerships with authorities in several countries for local storage and last-mile distribution, such in Germany’s most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia.