BioNTech/Pfizer’s mooted EU deal for 70mn Covid shots threatens rivals
A proposed deal between BioNTech/Pfizer and the EU for about 70mn Covid-19 shots a year until 2026 threatens to push rivals Moderna, Novavax, and Sanofi out of the market, risking the regional prevention of Covid-19 being left to just one product.
The bloc is negotiating an amended deal with Pfizer despite the European public prosecutor opening a criminal investigation into their original agreement. The fresh proposal includes a new provision for member states to pay half price — about €10 — for each cancelled dose, according to people close to negotiations, who also confirmed the annual 70mn figure. The newer contract would allow the EU to upgrade to newer vaccines tailored to any future variants, two of those people said.
Sanofi insisted that its doses were not being destroyed and the 60mn doses it has delivered to EU countries were being used or would be used in autumn vaccination campaigns. The Paris-headquartered company said it was “confident” its vaccine remained a “valuable option”.
Novavax, whose share price has tanked 97 per cent from 2021 highs after warning of “substantial doubts” over its future, ran into significant manufacturing issues and ended up delivering doses with less than three months’ shelf life in 2022, people familiar with the matter said. Another said that the US drugmaker replaced the doses that had expired for free.
This story originally appeared on: Financial Times - Author:Adrienne Klasa
