Pfizer and BioNTech will temporarily cut shipping the coronavirus vaccine to Europe, several European governments confirmed on Friday.
Germany has said that the delivery schedule for the next three to four weeks will be affected as the US company builds its production site in the Belgian city of Puurs.
” At short notice, the EU Commission and via the EU member states were informed that Pfizer [and BioNTech] would not be able to fully meet the already promised delivery volume over the next three to four weeks due to the adjustments to the Puurs plant, “the ministry said.
German authorities said they regretted the “unexpected news about the delivery of the vaccine, which was developed together with the German company BioNTech.” Berlin has called on the European Commission to “seek clarity and certainty” for future deliveries.
EU nations angry
Six EU countries declare the situation “unacceptable” in a letter sent to the European Commission following the move by Pfizer and BioNTech.
“It not only affects the planned vaccination schedules, it also reduces the credibility of the vaccination process,” said the health ministers of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
They also urged the European Commission to “demand a public statement”.
Lithuania had earlier reported that from the week to mid-February, it would receive only half of the agreed shots.
“The manufacturer has told us that the cuts are EU-wide,” Lithuanian health ministry spokeswoman Vitautas Beniusis told Reuters news agency on Friday. Belgium has said its stockpile will also be halved by mid-February.
US is still on schedule
Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, later commented on the news, mentioning Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, and said he would do everything possible to reduce delays. The Pfizer chief would “personally” work to get the deliveries up and running as soon as possible, ‘von der Leyen said.
“He reassured me that all guaranteed doses from the first quarter would be delivered in the first quarter,” she said of Bourla.
Pfizer initially said deliveries were on schedule. However, they later acknowledged that deliveries would be affected in late January to early February as production increased.
Pfizer and BioNTech said in a statement on Friday that the “fluctuations” caused by the improvements in the Puurs plant would provide a significant increase in doses available to patients at the end of February and March.
The companies also said that the US market would not be affected. However, Canadian officials reported that their country would be affected by the downsizing and called the changes “unfortunate”.
More problems for EU leaders
The EU approved the BioNTech-Pfizer product in late December, and Moderna’s vaccine also received the green light earlier this month. The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is expected to be cleared in the EU by the end of the month.
The latest cuts are likely to put more pressure on governments across the continent as they struggle with giant vaccinations. In Germany and other EU countries, authorities are accused of dragging their feet or toppling the vaccination campaigns.
Pfizer aims for 2 billion doses per year
Norway, which is not an EU member, announced the setback. The country’s Institute of Public Health (FHI) said the US pharmaceutical giant wants to upgrade its production capacity to 2 billion doses a year of 1.3 billion. They also said it was unclear how long it would take before Pfizer was back to maximum production capacity.
“We received this message today a little before 10:00 (09:00 GMT). We expected 43,475 doses of Pfizer in week 3. [next week]. “Now it looks like we’ll get 36,075 doses, ‘the agency said.
To compensate for the reduction in deliveries, Norway will use the vaccine doses he set aside as a precaution when he receives his first awards.
Norway is closely linked to the EU in many areas because it is within the internal market of the bloc. As in Lithuania and Germany, the acquisition of Norway’s COVID vaccines is being negotiated by EU officials.
jf, dj / ng (Reuters, AFP)