PUNE, India (AP) – A fire broke out on Thursday in a building under construction at Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, which could potentially affect the future expansion of COVID-19 vaccine production.
Firefighters were extinguishing the flames, said the fire department in the city of Pune in the southern state of Maharashtra. The cause of the fire and the extent of the damage were not immediately clear.
The company said the fire is limited to a new facility it is building to increase COVID-19 vaccine production and ensure it is better prepared for future pandemics.
The fire did not affect the existing facilities that make COVID-19 vaccines, or a stockpile of approximately 50 million doses. No injuries were reported.
Images showed large plumes of smoke from the building while firefighters worked to put out the blaze.
Serum Institute of India is the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines and has been contracted to manufacture one billion doses of AstraZeneca / Oxford University vaccine.
Its CEO Adar Poonawalla said in an interview with The Associated Press last month that he hopes to increase production capacity from 1.5 billion doses to 2.5 billion doses per year by 2021. The new facility is the key to the expansion.
Of the more than 12 billion doses of coronavirus vaccine expected to be produced this year, rich countries have already bought about 9 billion, and many have options to buy even more. As a result, Serum Institute is likely to make most of the vaccines that will be used by developing countries.