Pfizer, BioNTech To Supply Up To 1.8 Bln Additional Doses Of COVID-19 Vaccine To EU
Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE announced a new agreement with the European Commission to supply 900 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty (BNT162b2) to the European Union. As part of the deal, the EC also has an option to increase the number of doses delivered by up to an additional 900 million.
The latest deal is in addition to the 600 million doses that have already been committed to the EU through 2021. The total number of potential doses delivered to the EC, inclusive of all agreements, would be up to 2.4 billion.
The companies plan to manufacture all doses for the EC in the European Union. The additional 900 million agreed doses will delivered on a monthly schedule beginning December 2021 and continuing into 2023.
On 8 May, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reportedly had announced that the EU had secured a mega deal with Pfizer/BioNTech for up to 1.8 billion doses of Comirnaty up until 2023.
Albert Bourla, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Pfizer, said, “Ongoing vaccination beyond 2021 is critical as COVID-19 continues to spread rapidly throughout Europe and the globe.”
According to Ugur Sahin, M.D., CEO and Co-Founder of BioNTech, the contract with the European Commission will ensure sufficient doses of COMIRNATY are available for all EU citizens in 2022 and 2023.
Based on current projections, Pfizer and BioNTech expect to manufacture at least 2.5 billion doses of the vaccine, in total, by the end of 2021, with the potential to supply up to 3 billion doses.
Pfizer and BioNTech said they are working on continued development of the vaccine, including evaluation of a potential booster dose, and an updated version of the vaccine to address potential variants.
Other authorized covid-19 vaccines in the EU include Moderna’s mRNA-1273, Johnson & Johnson’s JNJ-78436735 and the University of Oxford/AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria (AZD1222).
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