Novavax opens new plant for infectious disease vaccines

Vaccine maker Novavax on Thursday said it opened its first plant that will be used to manufacture vaccines for infectious diseases in the U.S.

The $5 million, 5,000 square-foot facility at the company's headquarters in Rockville, Md., will focus on producing flu vaccine for Novavax's clinical programs, with planned annual capacity of 10 million doses.

Although the company does not currently have any vaccines on the market, its lead candidate is for pandemic flu, currently in mid-stage testing. Its other candidates are for pandemic flu, shingles and HIV.

Shares of Novavax rose 6 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $2.43 in morning trading.