SK Plasma, a blood plasma-derived biopharmaceutical products manufacturer under SK Group, said Wednesday that it has won a $900,000 deal to supply the North Atlantic Treaty Organization with albumin.

It is the first Korean biologics company to source pharmaceuticals to NATO.

“In order to be selected as a supplier to a multinational organization such as NATO, trust on the technological sureness is of utmost importance,” said SK Plasma CEO Kim Yun-ho.

“This deal is evidence of SK Plasma products’ superiority and competitiveness, which will be a stepping-stone for our further global advances,” Kim said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade lent a crucial helping hand in the deal, opening the door to Korean companies to vie for the contest to become a supplier, where previously only a NATO member nation could partake.

Albumin is a protein produced by liver that balances the liquid pressure within bloodstreams. It carries hormones, vitamins, enzymes and other various substances throughout the body.

The SK Albumin will go to Afghan National Army Territorial Force, which is facing shortage of essential medicines due to prolonged civil war. Supplies will commence from the third quarter of 2020.

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)