An AstraZeneca vaccine production line.
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The European Union has suggested that pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca divert the supply of its coronavirus vaccine from the UK to continental Europe, while the battle for delays in production and supply continues.
It came after AstraZeneca told the EU last week that it would initially distribute far fewer doses of its Covid vaccine to the 27-member bloc than originally thought.
The EU on Wednesday demanded that the pharmaceutical giant comply with its agreement to provide vaccines against coronavirus, by all necessary means.
Health commissioner Stella Kyriakides said the negotiations with the company, which continued on Wednesday, were “constructive”. But she also tweeted that “contractual obligations must be fulfilled, vaccines must be delivered to EU citizens.”
She said in a statement that the EU rejected “first-come, first-served logic” after AstraZeneca’s CEO blamed supply delays for teething problems at its European factories and said similar problems in the UK were resolved because he had requested his vaccine dose three months before the EU.
At a news conference, Kyriakides said there was no “hierarchy” in the factories mentioned in his advance purchase contract with AstraZeneca, and no stipulation on which would supply the EU or not.
“In the contract, there are four factories listed, but there is no difference between the UK and Europe. UK factories are part of our advance purchase agreement and that is why they have to deliver, ”she said. There was no clause in the contract stating that the drugmaker would prioritize the UK, she added.
Battle beer
This marks the latest development in public discussion between the EU and AstraZeneca, when it faces problems at two of its European factories.
Swedish-British company CEO Pascal Soriot further heightened tensions on Tuesday when he said in an interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica that his deal with the EU was a “best effort” and not a “contractual commitment” .
The EU reacted, demanding that the pharmaceutical company submit detailed plans on its delivery schedule. An official explicitly asked AstraZeneca to divert doses made in the UK to the EU, although the company did not answer that question, according to a Reuters report.
In Tuesday’s interview, Soriot said: “The UK government said that the supply from the UK supply chain would go to the UK first. Basically, it is like that. In the EU agreement, it is mentioned that factories in the UK were an option for Europe, but only later. “
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson did not comment directly on the matter on Wednesday, but said: “We are very confident in our supplies, very confident in our contracts and we are moving forward on that basis.”
Vaccines
The EU is struggling to start its vaccination campaign as there is a shortage of supplies. It was the first blow by vaccine maker Pfizer-BioNTech, who announced that it would have to temporarily reduce production in order to increase its manufacturing capacity in Belgium. This was followed by AstraZeneca last Friday, reducing its delivery estimates for the region.
An unidentified senior EU official told Reuters that the bloc expected about 80 million doses by March, but was told it would receive only 31 million doses. The company has not confirmed the quantities involved.
The European Medicines Agency is expected to approve the AstraZeneca vaccine for use on Friday.
The UK ordered 100 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine last May, making it the first country to do so. It is heavily dependent on the vaccine for its immunization campaign, which ran ahead of those in continental Europe, having started in early December. The EU started its launch on 27 December; originally ordered 300 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine in August.
So far, the UK has vaccinated more than 7.1 million people with the first dose of the vaccine and almost half a million have received the second dose, meaning it has had more immunizations than Germany, France, Italy and Spain combined, of according to Our World In Data Numbers.