Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc

Oxford Nanopore and Plasmidsaurus  announce collaboration and multi-year, multi-million dollar contract expansion

Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc (LSE: ONT) ("Oxford Nanopore"), the company delivering a new generation of nanopore-based molecular sensing technology, and Plasmidsaurus, the LA-based company that introduced overnight whole-plasmid sequencing, today announce a new strategic collaboration to advance plasmid sequencing beyond legacy methods, and an expanded multi-year, multi-million dollar global contract.

Plasmidsaurus' whole-plasmid sequencing is used by researchers and industry professionals around the world for a broad spectrum of applications, from basic research to industrial applications, gene therapy, vaccine development, genetic engineering and more. Its sequencing capabilities are based on Oxford Nanopore's real-time, long-read sequencing technology, which has enabled Plasmidsaurus to set new standards for quality and speed, delivering overnight results and richer datasets that unlock more accurate, comprehensive, and reliable insights.

The extension of the existing contract will see the collaboration continue to take share of a fast-growing estimated $1.5B market opportunity in synthetic biology as nanopore-based sequencing continues to displace traditional methods, such as Sanger, for plasmid sequencing. Founded in 2021, Plasmidsaurus has since opened nine labs in three countries and is expanding its global network of 660 dropboxes and labs in key biotech hubs, including new locations in the US, Europe, and Asia. Plasmidsaurus became an Oxford Nanopore customer in 2021.

As strategic collaborators going forward, Oxford Nanopore and Plasmidsaurus also intend to co-develop new technologies, reagents, and applications beyond plasmid sequencing, including microbial and gene therapy use cases, to best meet evolving market needs, providing further market share opportunities.

Gordon Sanghera, CEO of Oxford Nanopore commented:

"By collaborating with Plasmidsaurus, we are advancing the fields of synthetic biology and biotechnology through the unique capabilities of nanopore technology that are not possible with legacy methods. Our joint efforts will drive significant market growth and deliver best-in-class sequencing services to a global audience."

[ENDS]

For further information, please contact:

Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc

Investors:         ir@nanoporetech.com

Media:              media@nanoporetech.com

Teneo (communications adviser to the Company)

Tom Murray, Olivia Peters

+44 (0) 20 7353 4200

OxfordNanoporeTechnologies@teneo.com  

About Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc:

Oxford Nanopore Technologies' goal is to bring the widest benefits to society through enabling the analysis of anything, by anyone, anywhere. The company has developed a new generation of nanopore-based sensing technology that is currently used for real-time, high-performance, accessible, and scalable analysis of DNA and RNA.  The technology is used in more than 120 countries, to understand the biology of humans, plants, animals, bacteria, viruses and environments as well as to understand diseases such as cancer. Oxford Nanopore's technology also has the potential to provide broad, high impact, rapid insights in a number of areas including healthcare, food and agriculture.

Oxford Nanopore devices sequence DNA and RNA directly and sequence short to ultra-long fragments of DNA, for a truly comprehensive picture of the genome. Data is streamed in real-time and can enable rapid insights.  The technology is fully scalable - from pocket-sized to ultra-high throughput devices.

For more information please visit: www.nanoporetech.com

Forward-looking statements

This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements. For example, statements regarding expected revenue growth and profit margins are forward-looking statements. Phrases such as "aim", "plan", "expect", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "target", and similar expressions of a future or forward-looking nature should also be considered forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements address our expected future business and financial performance and financial condition, and by definition address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. Our results could be affected by macroeconomic conditions, the COVID-19 pandemic, delays in our receipt of components or our delivery of products to our customers, suspensions of large projects and/or acceleration of large products or accelerated adoption of pathogen surveillance. These or other uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements.