Biotechnology company, Ocugen and Bharat Biotech are expanding their agreement to commercialise Covaxin in Mexico.
Bharat Biotech said they were amending their co-development, supply and commercialisation agreement to expand Ocugen’s exclusive territory to include commercialisation of Covaxin in Mexico along with existing partnership for United States and Canada.
Shankar Musunuri, chairman of the board, CEO and co-founder of Ocugen, said they were encouraged to commercialise Covaxin in Mexico after meeting with Mexico’s secretary of foreign affairs, Marcelo Ebrard, in Delhi. Covaxin is currently under review by COFEPRIS (Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios) for emergency use among children between 2 and 18 years of age. Covaxin has already been authorised for emergency use in adults by health regulators in Mexico.
Musunuri said Covaxin was an ideal vaccination option for Mexico at this stage of the pandemic as it showed robust cellular immune memory to SARS-CoV-2 and variants of concern. It also had logistical advantages and could support vaccine access in hard-to-reach communities.
Krishna Ella, chairman and managing director, Bharat Biotech, said they would expedite technology transfer to Ocugen for commercial scale manufacturing of Covaxin in North America. The license extension between Ocugen and Bharat Biotech for commercialisation in Mexico would include the same profit share structure as in the United States. Bharat Biotech has supplied 350 million doses of Covaxin globally for adults and children.
