Kodak has already proven it can fight 'pharmaceutical blockage' in US: CEO

Kodak has already proven it can "fight the pharmaceutical blockage" in the U.S. because it has manufactured unregulated key "starter materials" for several years, Kodak's Executive Chairman and CEO Jim Continenza said Wednesday.

KODAK TO ADD 360 JOBS AS TRUMP PUSHES USA PHARMACEUTICAL RAMP UP

"We’re here to ... help fight the pharmaceutical blockage in the U.S. and the lack of supply. So we’re really here for the right reasons," Continenza told "Varney & Co." "The answer is not only can we do it, we are already doing it."

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Kodak, which is based in Rochester, New York, will receive a $765 million dollar loan under the Defense Production Act to manufacture key starting materials used in medicines and other active pharmaceutical ingredients. Its stock skyrocketed on the news.

"We will supply about 25 percent of the small molecule KSMs and APIs, which is key starting materials and active pharmaceutical ingredients, for the U.S. supply chain with other partners," Continenza said.

KODAK LANDS $765M US LOAN UNDER DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT TO BOOST DRUG PRODUCTION Kodak's background in manufacturing film chemicals prepared it to step into this new space, Continenza said. The company will scale up from batch manufacturing to continuous manufacturing, he added.

The Trump administration's push to reshore pharmaceutical manufacturing comes after many U.S. leaders expressed concerns about U.S. reliance on India and especially China for pharmaceuticals.

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