Vietnam firm to produce 10,000 Covid-19 test kits daily

A Vietnamese company will produce 10,000 Covid-19 test kits daily after a successful pilot scheme given high demand as the coronavirus is spreading around the globe, VnExpress reported.

The nCoV biological test kits. Photo: BN

The test kits, jointly developed by the Military Medical Academy and Viet A Corporation, have been approved by the Ministry of Health for mass production as they provide 100% accurate results after more than one hour of testing.

The kit uses molecular biology techniques (RT-PCR and realtime RT-PCR), manufactured on ISO 13485 standard line, cleanroom classification of ISO 8.

Lieutenant General Do Quyet, director of the Military Medical Academy, said that tests for criteria of sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and repeatability were conducted at standard laboratories of Viet A Corporation and the Military Medical Academy.

The results show that the kit meets the criteria similar to the biological kit manufactured by WHO and the US’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Quyet added.

General Director of Viet A Corporation Phan Quoc Viet said that cost of researching the test kit has been funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology, thus, the current price is only VND400,000-600,000 (US$17.28-25.92) per set.

WHO’s and CDC’s kit prices are four times higher, but have not been commercially produced, Viet said, adding that his company is capable of producing 10,000 Covid-19 test kits per day right from March 6 and the capacity would triple if needed.

Earlier, the Ministry of Science and Technology had called on scientists to help deal with the new coronavirus, saying making test kits is a priority.

There have been no infection cases since February 13 in Vietnam but the epidemic is spreading quickly around the globe, with the outbreaks growing fast in South Korea, Italy and Iran.