Cholera vaccine specialist Eubiologics has shown strong performance growth, recording net profits for two consecutive years. The expansion of the cholera vaccine 'Euvichol' product line is the main contributor. The company plans to expand research and development (R&D) to secure new revenue sources beyond cholera vaccines and is pushing forward with the construction of a third factory accordingly. Regarding competitors developing follow-up products, they forecast, "There will be no significant impact until this year."
Eubiologics announced on the 2nd that its standalone sales last year were approximately 149.2 billion KRW, a 55.4% increase from the previous year (96 billion KRW), and operating profit increased by 76.8% to 60.6 billion KRW during the same period. Net profit was 48.7 billion KRW, a 156.4% increase compared to the previous year (19 billion KRW). They have maintained net profits for two consecutive years.
Euvichol Leading Performance, Competition Products Expected
Eubiologics' main business consists of three cholera vaccine products: 'Euvichol (vial/oral)', 'Euvichol Plus (plastic tube/oral)', and 'Euvichol-S (plastic tube/oral)'. These products are exclusively supplied to the public vaccine market in Africa.
Last year, they signed a long-term supply contract with UNICEF for 72 million doses of cholera vaccine, of which about 93% (67 million doses) is expected to be supplied to medical sites. This significantly exceeds the scale of cholera vaccines supplied by the company in 2024 (approximately 37 million doses).
The expansion of Eubiologics' cholera vaccine supply will be fully realized in 2024. That year, Sanofi's Indian subsidiary, Shanta Biotech, withdrew its own cholera vaccine 'Sanchol' from the public vaccine market. They judged that the costs and time invested in the bidding process were inefficient compared to the revenue from the public market. Through this, Eubiologics became the exclusive supplier of cholera vaccines in Africa.
However, the exclusive position of Euvichol in the public market is not expected to last long. This is because GCBT, an Indian company that acquired Shanta Biotech's production facilities, regained the World Health Organization (WHO) prequalification (PQ) certification for Sanchol last October. This secures a position to enter the public vaccine market, increasing the likelihood of re-entering as a competitor to the Euvichol product line.
Additionally, it is reported that Bharat Biotech in India successfully completed Phase 3 clinical trials for the oral cholera vaccine 'HillChol' in the first half of last year. The full product supply timing for this drug is expected to be in 2027 after obtaining PQ certification.
In this regard, an Eubiologics official stated, "Euvichol-S and others are more competitive compared to Sanchol," adding, "HillChol is expected to enter the market next year, so it will not immediately affect our products this year." The official also mentioned, "We will maintain marketability by emphasizing the competitiveness of our products."
The company also announced last month that it signed a supply contract for Euvichol-S worth approximately 7.5 billion KRW with UNICEF.
Push for Third Factory Construction, Accelerating New Vaccine Commercialization
Eubiologics announced that the board of directors resolved to proceed with the construction of a third factory to accelerate the commercialization of major vaccine candidates (pipeline) on the 3rd.
According to the quarterly report for the third quarter of last year, Eubiologics is in the process of commercialization and R&D for the following pipelines: △Typhoid vaccine 'EuTYPH-C (WHO PQ review in progress)' △5-valent meningococcal vaccine 'EuNmCV-5 (Phase 2/3 clinical trials in Africa)' △Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine 'EuRSV (Phase 1 clinical trials in Korea)' △COVID-19 vaccine 'Eucovax-19 (Philippines product approval in progress)' △Shingles vaccine 'EuHZV'.
To this end, the R&D expenses invested by Eubiologics were recorded at 5.2 billion KRW (excluding government subsidies of 2.5 billion KRW) on a cumulative basis as of the third quarter of last year. Previously, they planned to invest 25.7 billion KRW (excluding government subsidies of 3.9 billion KRW) in R&D from 2023 to 2024.
Eubiologics has set a goal to launch typhoid and meningococcal vaccines by 2028, and respiratory syncytial virus and shingles vaccines around 2030. To support the production of these products, they plan to invest 111.5 billion KRW in phases for the construction of the third factory.
An Eubiologics official stated, "The third factory will be a turning point for Eubiologics to leap beyond a public health vaccine company to a global vaccine and biopharmaceutical company centered on advanced markets," adding, "We will achieve structural growth that enhances long-term revenue visibility and shareholder value based on stable production capacity."
