The Covishield vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford and manufactured by Serum Institute of India.
Photographer: Dhiraj Singh / Bloomberg
Photographer: Dhiraj Singh / Bloomberg
India says it can increase its production of Covid-19 vaccines to 500 million a month for export as it sparks interest from the UK, Belgium and countries in the Middle East and Africa seeking access to cheaper vaccinations.
The South Asian nation has the capacity to produce AstraZeneca Plc’s vaccine is locally produced by the Serum Institute of India Ltd, as well as an indigenously developed shot, on the basis that demand is expected to increase by the end of this week, according to people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified as talks are still ongoing . South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria are in talks about supplies among African countries, they said.
New Delhi began sending vaccines to six neighboring countries on Wednesday – Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Maldives and Seychelles – and is awaiting regulatory permission from Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Mauritius to send the shots, Indian ministry said. of Foreign Affairs. said in one statement Tuesday. The ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Read: Mass vaccination starts in India despite safety concerns
The vaccines sent around the area are all subsidy and will cover healthcare providers, frontline workers and the most vulnerable in the South Asian countries, he said. Declarations of intent for more countries are expected on Wednesday.
More countries from Europe have expressed interest in purchasing vaccines produced in India, given the average cost of $ 35 Pfizer Inc.-BioNTech SE and Moderna shots, according to officials. Serum, the world’s largest vaccine producer by volume, can ship the Astra vaccine at a price of between $ 5-10 per dose.
The Pune-based company can currently release 65 million Covid shots per month, but has the option of increasing that to 100 million doses, said an official at Serum, who asked not to be named because the information was private. She expects the government to place orders for deliveries to Myanmar, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka later Wednesday.
Side effects
But even countries that have ordered the 20 million doses sent to the immediate vicinity of India and in the Middle East are waiting until the end of this week for data on the adverse effects of the Covishield vaccines from Serum India started before they are placed. final orders, officials said.
India has also issued an early use license to a local company The Covaxin incorporation of Bharat Biotech International Ltd even though final phase of trials has yet to be completed. So far, all shipments from India have been candidates for the serum vaccine, officials said, adding that the ultimate demand for both vaccines will depend on their safety data.
India, the world’s second worst hit country with more than 10.5 million infections and 152,718 reported deaths, launched the world’s largest vaccination campaign on Saturday. Of the 674,835 people vaccinated across the country on Wednesday, nine people require hospitalization because of side effects, according to government data.
India is also preparing to ship to Brazil, which was postponed last week, the people said. The South American nation is one of the few countries to have received personal assurances from Prime Minister Narendra Modi about vaccine delivery, they said.
– With the assistance of Ragini Saxena
(Updates with virus data in the 10th paragraph.)