The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Tuesday that it will grant a loan of 130 million yuan (about 18.6 million U.S. dollars) to a Chinese pharmaceutical firm to help contain the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The company, the Jointown Pharmaceutical Group (Jointown), is headquartered in Wuhan, the capital city of China's Hubei Province and center of the epidemic outbreak. It was designated by the provincial government as one of the companies to procure and distribute drugs and medical supplies during the epidemic.

ADB said the two-year loan will support Jointown's efforts to ensure a continued supply of essential medicines and personal protective equipment such as protective clothing, gloves, goggles, masks and respirators.

"This financing will help Jointown maintain adequate stock of urgently needed medical supplies, antiviral drugs and personal protective equipment for distribution to hospitals and retail pharmacy outlets," the Director General of ADB's Private Sector Operations Department Mike Barrow said.

This was part of ADB's broader response to the novel coronavirus outbreak, which was initiated on Feb. 7 with 2-million-dollar funding to strengthen response capacity to the outbreak in several countries in Asia and the Pacific.