China-based Clover Biopharmaceuticals and Norway-based CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, have announced that CEPI will provide up to an additional $36.9 million in funding to support continued development of COVID-19 vaccine candidate SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum) through licensure.

This brings CEPI’s total potential funding in SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum) up to $397.4 million, which represents one of CEPI’s largest investments in a COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer to date.

Previous CEPI funding has supported preclinical and clinical testing of the vaccine, in addition to scaling up the manufacturing process. Pending WHO Emergency Use Listing (EUL), Clover will supply up to 414 million doses of the vaccine to the COVAX Facility for equitable distribution.

Clover is utilizing the funding from CEPI to develop SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum) as a primary vaccination for all age groups (pediatric, adolescent, adults and elderly) and as a potential booster for previously-infected individuals and populations that have received SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum) for the primary vaccination (homologous booster).

In September 2021, Clover announced SPECTRA, a global pivotal phase 2/3 clinical trial evaluating the efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity of SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum). Evaluation of SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum) as a homologous booster will be conducted as an expansion arm of SPECTRA and initiate in the near-term. Clover is also in the process of planning multiple heterologous booster studies with SCB-2019 (CpG 1018/Alum).