AstraZeneca joins hands with Indian Institute to form vaccine

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AstraZeneca joins hands with Indian Institute to form vaccine
AstraZeneca joins hands with Indian Institute to form vaccine

New Delhi : Biopharma major AstraZeneca has signed an agreement with a Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) to develop a potential vaccine which is currently under trial at the University of Oxford on a mass scale, if successful.

“Our vaccine work is progressing quickly”, the university said on Friday.

The agreements, reached on a not-for-profit basis includes a $750 million agreement with the Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness Innovations founded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Gavi, the vaccine alliance, to support the manufacturing, procurement and distribution of 300 million doses of the vaccine, with delivery starting by the end of the year.

“In addition, the university and industry partnership reached a licensing agreement with SII to supply one billion doses for low-and-middle-income countries, with a commitment to provide 400 million before the end of 2020”, the university said.

Adar Poonawalla, SII’s chief executive officer, said: “Serum Institute of India is delighted to partner with AstraZeneca in bringing this vaccine to India as well as low-and-middle-income countries”.

“Over the past 50 years, SII has built significant capability in vaccine manufacturing and supply globally. We will work closely with AstraZeneca to ensure fair and equitable distribution of the vaccine in these countries,” he added.