MOSCOW, Aug 4 (Reuters) – Delays in international deliveries of the second dose of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine will be fully resolved this month, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), responsible for the marketing of the vaccine abroad.
The Russian vaccine uses two different component doses and is given 21 days apart. Several countries that have started receiving shipments have complained in recent weeks about delays in the delivery of second dose batches.
“The Sputnik V team confirms that due to a significant increase in vaccine production capacity, temporary delays in delivery of the second component that occurred due to this increased production will be fully restored in August,” he said. the notice.
The RDIF has established overseas manufacturing partnerships with producers from 14 countries, according to the statement, and will further increase its capacity next month thanks to a partnership with the Serum Institute of India.
“Sputnik V will accelerate work with other vaccine producers on the mix-and-match approach,” he added. Initial small-scale trials of a vaccine using one dose of Sputnik V with one produced by AstraZeneca are ongoing and have recently yielded good results, RDIF added.
Reuters had previously reported that some manufacturers of the Sputnik V injection have found the second dose easier to produce than the first.
Argentina, one of the first countries to widely use the two doses of Sputnik V, increased pressure on Moscow last month due to delays in the arrival of the second doses, which are delaying the inoculation campaign.
“At this point the entire contract is at risk of being publicly canceled,” the government wrote in a letter in July.
Also in July, an Indian distributor of the vaccine said that the full deployment of the vaccine in India will have to be put on hold until producers provide equal amounts of both doses.
