Moscow: Russia’s sovereign wealth fund has agreed to supply 100 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine, Sputnik-V, to Indian drugmaker Dr Reddy`s Laboratories, the fund said on Wednesday, as Moscow accelerates plans to distribute its injection in the Foreign.
The deal comes after the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) struck deals with Indian manufacturers to produce 300 million doses of the vaccine in India, which is a major consumer of Russian oil and weapons.
Dr Reddy`s, one of India’s leading pharmaceutical companies, will conduct phase III clinical trials of the vaccine in India, pending regulatory approval, RDIF said in a statement.
Deliveries to India could begin in late 2020, he said, adding that this was subject to the completion of trials and registration of the vaccine by regulatory authorities in India.
Russia was the first country to authorize a new coronavirus vaccine before large-scale phase III trials were completed, raising concerns among scientists and clinicians about the vaccine’s safety and efficacy.
Results from Phase I and II had shown promise, said GV Prasad, Dr. Reddy`s co-chair, in the RDIF statement.
“The Sputnik V vaccine could provide a credible option in our fight against COVID-19 in India,” he said.
There were no details on the price of the vaccine, but RDIF has previously said it did not aim to make a profit, only to cover costs.
The deal comes as India’s coronavirus cases topped 5 million on Wednesday, putting pressure on hospitals struggling with unreliable supplies of oxygen they need to treat tens of thousands of critically ill patients.
India is only the second country in the world to cross the grim milestone and said this week that it is considering granting an emergency authorization for a vaccine, particularly for the elderly and people in high-risk workplaces.
RDIF has already reached vaccine supply agreements with Kazakhstan, Brazil and Mexico. It has also signed a memorandum with the Saudi Chemical company.
Russia has announced Sputnik-V as the world’s first registered coronavirus vaccine. Phase III trials, involving at least 40,000 people, began in Russia on August 26, but have not yet been completed.
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