ETANA INAUGURATES BIOPHARMACEUTICAL FACTORY

Jakarta, 07 October 2022 - PT Etana Biotechnologies Indonesia (Etana) today inaugurated a biopharmaceutical factory located in the Pulogadung Industrial Estate, East Jakarta. Etana is a start-up company in the biopharmaceutical field that develops a variety of innovative products, focusing on various vaccines, cancer drugs, and other biological products. The inauguration of the factory was carried out by the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Ir. H. Joko Widodo, accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan; Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin; and Head of the Food and Drug Administration (BPOM), Penny K. Lukito; and President Director of Etana, Nathan Tirtana. This biopharmaceutical factory has been certified with Good Manufacturing Practices (CPOB) from BPOM since December 2019.

Nathan Tirtana, President Director of PT Etana Biotechnologies Indonesia, said, “The inauguration of this biopharmaceutical factory is a form of Etana's commitment in producing biological drugs and vaccines which are very important and needed to improve health standards in Indonesia. We will produce biological drugs and vaccines locally as an effort to support the government in creating national independence and resilience in the Health fields.”

Etana will produce a Covid-19 vaccine with an mRNA platform in collaboration with Chinese companies, Yuxi Walvax Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (Walvax) and Suzhou Abogen Biosciences Co., Ltd. (Abogen), through technology transfer. The mRNA vaccine has received an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the Indonesian POM Agency, a halal provision from the Indonesian Ulema Council's (MUI) LPOM and a halal certificate from the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH) of the Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs.

In addition, Etana will produce Erythropoietin (EPO) that is needed in dialysis treatment. Onward, the company plans to develop an adenovirus platform for vaccine production. The production is intended to meet domestic needs and is planned to be exported to the ASEAN market and several other countries.

“Etana is 100% supported by the human resources of the nation's young who come from various fields of science, of domestic and foreign graduates, and have been trained through technology transfer. Collaborating with qualified various parties, both foreign and domestic, is our way to make it happen as well as with the support of high-tech facilities. This is a part of Etana's efforts in developing Indonesian human resources to become more competent in the health sector,” continued Nathan.

PT Etana Biotechnologies is located in the Pulogadung Industrial Estate (JIEP) stands on a land area of 6,471 m2. This factory has the advantage of the latest technological facilities, quality systems and facilities with international standards and is environmentally friendly. In the future, Etana will expand production facilities for multiplatform drug substance for monoclonal antibodies and adenoviruses.

Etana became the first pharmaceutical company in ASEAN to have mRNA technology. MRNA technology is a flexible vaccine development platform so that it can respond quickly to the need for innovative and flexible biopharmaceutical products for cancer, vaccines, and others. It takes a fairly short time in the development of a new vaccine with mRNA technology, the vaccine product is developed and ready to enter the Clinical Trial Phase at approximately two months. With this technology, Etana can also produce the first locally produced Covid-19 vaccine in Indonesia called InaRNAVac.

Etana at a glance

Founded in 2014, Etana is an Indonesian biopharmaceutical company that is researching,

producing, and marketing biological therapies for the Southeast Asian market. With a mission to serve patients by providing high quality, affordable, and innovative therapies, the company has built state-of-the-art local production facilities that meet international and Indonesian FDA standards. The facility is able to produce biological therapy with halal certification from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI). Etana aspires to become a leading biopharmaceutical company in the ASEAN region through aggressive expansion in production capacity and product development, with a primary focus on oncology and vaccine products.

Etana is led by a local management team who come from various international and domestic educational backgrounds and have strong experience in the biopharmaceutical industry, and are supported by a team of international investors and leading biopharmaceutical companies. Etana aims to provide innovative yet affordable therapies through local production, to support Indonesian government programs and larger market demands. Ethane is currently a leading biotech company in Indonesia committed to the research and manufacture of monoclonal antibodies, mRNAs and other biological platforms.