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Janssen Pharmaceutical’s covid-19 vaccine and geothermal

Janssen Pharmaceutical’s covid-19 vaccine and geothermal Drilling rig on site at Janssen Pharmaceutica (source: screenshot/ YouTube, Guy Verellen)
Alexander Richter 1 Mar 2021

Congratulations to Belgian Janssen Pharmaceuticals on receiving approval for its covid-19 vaccine and of course on your efforts on utilising geothermal energy.

On February 27, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the third vaccine for the prevention of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The EUA allows the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine to be distributed in the U.S. for use in individuals 18 years of age and older, so the FDA on its website.

Belgian Janssen Pharmaceutical is part of the  Johnson & Johnson group.

For some of you who have been closely  following our reporting on geothermal development might connect Janssen with the company’s geothermal energy efforts we reported on. As a quick reference, see the video below and our reporting on the success of drilling in December 2020.

Vaccine & geothermal

Janssen Pharmaceutical decided to drill on the site of its facilities in Belgium for geothermal energy to provide sustainable clean heating to its operations. So while the story would be quite perfect being able to mention that geothermal helps produce vaccines, actual company releases point to a production across various facilities around the world.

Germany-based geothermal consultancy ERDWERK has been involved in the project since its inception and has had full time supervision presence on the drilling site for the duration of drilling and testing.

The project has been set up to support Johnson & Johnson’s pledge to reduce carbon emissions by 20 % by 2020 and 80 % by 2050. With the successful drilling, Janssen has been the first industrial developer of a geothermal project in Belgium. … and maybe the ambitions of the company in utilising geothermal also help produce and develop these important pharmaceuticals and vaccines in a greener and more sustainable way.

So congratulations to Janssen, of course first and foremost to the great work in helping getting our lives back to a kind of normal with a vaccine, but also for your dedication in the utilization of geothermal energy.