Moderna signs five-year agreement with Mexico to boost vaccine production

MEXICO—The Mexican government has secured a comprehensive five-year partnership with Moderna that will expand the country’s capacity to combat respiratory diseases while establishing local manufacturing capabilities for COVID-19 vaccines.

Under the agreement, Moderna will supply its complete portfolio of respiratory vaccines to Mexico and transfer critical COVID-19 vaccine technology to Liomont, a privately owned Mexican pharmaceutical company.

This technology transfer will enable Liomont to manufacture mRNA-1273, Moderna’s approved COVID-19 vaccine marketed as Spikevax.

Liomont operates advanced pharmaceutical facilities across Mexico and employs more than 1,500 people.

The company made history in 2019 when it opened a cutting-edge production plant in Estado de Mexico, becoming the first facility in Latin America to feature a liquid and vial filling line equipped with isolator technology.

The expansive plant covers over 1.6 million square meters and produces vaccines alongside other pharmaceutical products.

Part of broader economic initiative

The partnership forms a cornerstone of “Plan Mexico,” a government-led economic growth strategy designed to attract investment and develop domestic manufacturing capabilities.

Through this initiative, Moderna and Mexican officials will collaborate on addressing the country’s key health priorities while strengthening pandemic preparedness throughout the region.

Stéphane Bancel, Moderna’s chief executive officer, expressed pride in supporting Mexico’s efforts to fortify national health security.

He emphasized that the agreement will provide Mexican citizens with access to respiratory vaccines and establish crucial pandemic response capacity.

Bancel also highlighted the collaboration as evidence of growing vaccine demand in Mexico, presenting an opportunity to serve public health needs while expanding sales through geographic diversification.

Mexico previously committed to purchasing up to 10 million doses of Moderna’s updated 2025-2026 COVID-19 vaccine formulation.

Growing pharmaceutical investment in Mexico

Moderna joins several major pharmaceutical companies making significant commitments to Mexican operations.

Bayer announced plans in August 2025 to invest 3 billion pesos (USD 174.13 million) over five years to modernize and expand its existing Mexican facilities.

Both Boehringer Ingelheim and AstraZeneca have pledged substantial investments to upgrade their Mexican manufacturing plants, with AstraZeneca positioning Mexico as a potential “global hub for innovation and technology.”

FDA rejection clouds partnership announcement

The announcement of the Mexico partnership arrived amid challenging news for Moderna’s broader mRNA vaccine program.

The US Food and Drug Administration declined to review Moderna’s experimental mRNA influenza vaccine, marking a notable divergence between the regulator and pharmaceutical industry regarding the technology on February 10.

The FDA decision triggered a sharp decline in Moderna’s stock price, which dropped 10.5 percent from USD 41.99 at close on February 10 to USD 37.60 when markets opened the following day.

The company currently maintains a market capitalization of USD 14.7 billion.

The US mRNA sector continues facing uncertainty as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has repeatedly criticized mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines, questioning their safety and effectiveness.

This scrutiny recently resulted in a USD 500 million reduction in federal funding allocated for mRNA vaccine research.