As part of this new agreement, SII will be responsible for delivering up to 100 million doses of the vaccines priced at (around Rs 225) a dose for India and low- and middle-income countries. (Getty image)
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has decided to provide $150 million in at-risk funds towards helping the Serum Institute of India rapidly manufacture the Covid-19 vaccines developed by the University of Oxford-AstraZeneca and Novavax. As part of this new agreement, SII will be responsible for delivering up to 100 million doses of the vaccines priced at $3 (around Rs 225) a dose for India and low- and middle-income countries.
The collaboration, which involves GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance, will provide SII with “upfront capital” through the Foundation’s Strategic Investment Funds. This is expected to help the Pune-headquartered vaccine maker increase its manufacturing capacity to produce either or both vaccines “at scale” for distribution. Once they receive regulatory approvals and WHO prequalification, the doses are expected to be produced “as early as the first half of 2021”, according to SII.
The distribution will be done through the COVAX mechanism.
COVAX, co-led by GAVI, as well as the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and WHO, aims to discourage bilateral agreements for Covid-19 vaccines and instead improve equitable access. This is done by pooling funds from donor countries to purchase vaccines mainly for lower- and middle-income countries, including GAVI nations like India.
Under the COVAX umbrella, Gavi is leading a COVAX Facility, which is expected to provide governments with the opportunity to benefit from a “large” portfolio of Covid-19 candidate vaccines developed using a range of technology platforms.
The facility is reinforced by the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), which is currently seeking at least $2 billion in initial seed funding, and will meet “at least part” of the cost of procurement for the vaccine doses for the 92 countries that will be supported by it.
Under the new collaboration, AstraZeneca’s candidate vaccine, if successful, will be available to 57 Gavi-eligible countries. Novavax’s candidate, if successful, will be available to all 92 countries supported by the AMC, according to SII.
Novavax late on Wednesday announced an agreement with SII. The tie-up allows the Indian firm exclusive rights to supply the vaccine in India and non-exclusive rights “during the pandemic period” to supply to countries that are not designated “upper-middle or high-income” by the World Bank.
Earlier this year, SII had raised around $100 million to invest in building its capacity to manufacture just the Oxford candidate vaccine, which it is calling ‘Covishield’ in India. This candidate is undergoing late stage human trials on thousands of volunteers in various countries and SII is expected to begin a similar trial in India on 1,600 participants by next week.