Indian pharmaceutical company Shilpa Medicare announced an agreement with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd on the production of the Russian vaccine against COVID-19 “Sputnik V”, it is assumed that 50 million doses of the two-component vaccine will be produced annually.
Previously, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd, which received permission from the Indian authorities for the import and emergency use of the Sputnik V vaccine, received two batches of the Russian vaccine and announced the start of its use last week.
“The company, through its wholly owned subsidiary Shilpa Biologicals Private Limited, has entered into a definitive 3-year agreement with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Limited to manufacture and supply (manufactured in India – ed.) Sputnik V vaccine”, – Shilpa Medicare said in a statement released by on the Bombay Stock Exchange website.
The company noted that “the target production of the dual-vector Sputnik V for the first 12 months is 50 million doses (50 million components 1 and 50 million components 2) from the date of commercial production”.
It is noted that in accordance with the agreement, Shilpa Biologicals Private Limited will be responsible for the production of the vaccine, while Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Limited is responsible for the distribution and marketing of the produced vaccine.
“The companies are also exploring the possibility of producing Sputnik Light, a single-component version of the vaccine in the near future”, – the statement said.
India has the second highest number of cases of coronavirus detected in the world. According to the latest data from the Ministry of Health, the total number of people with COVID-19 in the country has exceeded 24.9 million. More than 21.1 million have recovered, more than 274 thousand people have died. The increase in the number of cases in India has continued since mid-February; since April 21, it has been more than 300 thousand people a day and five times exceeded the 400 thousand mark.