European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gives a press message at the end of a video conference meeting of European Council members focused on the Covid-19 pandemic in Brussels on 21 January 2021.
OLIVIER HOSLET | AFP | Getty Images
LONDON – The European Union on Friday released a drafted version of the contract signed with AstraZeneca as the blog puts pressure on the drug maker to deliver the promised Covid vaccine supplies.
AstraZeneca received a severe blow to the EU, which has been criticized for its slow deployment of inoculations, when the company said it would only be able to deliver a fraction of the shots agreed during the first quarter.
AstraZeneca has denied that it has not fulfilled its commitments, and said delivery figures on the 27-country bloc were targets rather than promises. The company also cited production problems at its European plants for the delays.
The European Medicines Agency is expected to make a decision on whether to approve the AstraZeneca vaccine for use on Friday.
Speaking to German radio on Friday morning, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “There are binding orders and the contract is clear.”
“AstraZeneca has also explicitly assured us in this contract that no other obligation would prevent the fulfillment of the contract,” he said, according to Reuters.
The head of the EU executive group said the deal contained clear delivery amounts for December and the first three quarters of 2021.
AstraZeneca was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC on Friday.
Problems of international competition
Earlier in the week, AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said the EU contract was based on a so-called “best effort” clause and did not formally commit the drug maker to a specific delivery schedule.
EU Von der Leyen rejected that suggestion on Friday and added that the clause was only valid if it was unclear whether AstraZeneca could develop a safe and effective vaccine. He also stated that the contract specifically mentioned four production sites that would supply the vaccine in Europe, two of which in Britain.
EU officials have indicated that supplies could be diverted from the UK to Europe if delays in European production persist.
The EU, with a population of around 450 million people, is struggling to get its vaccine up and running, as it has no supplies and is currently far behind countries such as Israel and the United Kingdom in delivering. vaccines to its citizens.
A vision of the headquarters of the British-Swedish pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical multinational AstraZeneca as a Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca inspected in Brussels, Belgium, on January 28, 2021.
Dursun Aydemir | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
It was first hit by vaccine maker Pfizer-BioNTech, which announced it had to temporarily reduce production to improve its manufacturing capacity in Belgium. It was then followed by AstraZeneca last Friday reducing its delivery forecasts in the region.
A senior unnamed EU official told Reuters that the block was expecting about 80 million doses by March, but had been told it would only receive 31 million doses. The company has not confirmed the amounts involved.
A deeper dispute between the EU and AstraZeneca has raised concerns about international competition for the limited supply of vaccines. Inoculations are expected to help end the coronavirus pandemic.
– CNBC’s Holly Ellyatt contributed to this report.