Astrazeneca is repeatedly criticized for delivering too little vaccine to the EU.
Now authorities have discovered a secret warehouse.
The company reacts.
Update from March 25th, 9:40 a.m
.: What is actually going on at Astrazeneca?
Is it all just a communication problem?
After the 29 million vaccine doses found in Italy, the pharmaceutical giant continues to be criticized.
The Swedish-British company tried to explain the gigantic vaccine warehouse.
"The vaccine was manufactured outside the EU and brought to the Agnani plant to be filled into vials," Astrazeneca said on Wednesday.
Of the 29 million doses of corona vaccine, 13 million doses are to go to the Covax initiative, which brings vaccine to poorer countries.
16 million cans - should be delivered to the EU in the next few weeks.
The company strictly denied allegations that Astrazeneca would stash vaccine in pandemic times: “It is incorrect to call this a stash.
The process of making vaccines is very complex and time consuming.
In particular, the vaccine doses have to wait for approval by quality control after the vials have been filled. "
What is behind the delivery problems at Astrazeneca
There has been tension between Brussels and the vaccine manufacturer for months.
But also with London.
The backlog and constant excuses poison the relationship.
Astrazeneca is said to deliver to the UK.
But it is also always about the Halix factory in Leiden, the Netherlands.
According to the EU Commission, this has been in production for some time.
So far, however, it has no EU approval - according to statements from EU circles, because the company did not advance the application.
The EU drug authority EMA, which is responsible for the approval of the system, did not want to comment on details of the procedure this week when asked by the dpa.
In any case, it has long been puzzled as to how much and for whom Halix produces.
Britain is reportedly hoping to get most of the vaccine it produces.
The British government made it clear, however, that no exports from the quota in Anagni are expected.
Astrazeneca emphasized: "There are currently no exports planned except to Covax countries."
What is certain is that Astrazeneca and the EU have signed a contract for up to 400 million vaccine doses in August 2020.
According to Brussels, Astrazeneca originally wanted to deliver 120 million vaccine doses to the EU in the first quarter - and then unilaterally reduced this to 30 million.
"But they are not even close to this number today," said EU Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis on Wednesday, as reported by the dpa.
In the second quarter, Astrazeneca is now officially promising 70 million cans - instead of the agreed 180 million.
Astrazeneca produces vaccine in Seneffe (Belgium) and Leiden (Netherlands).
Anagni in Italy and Dessau in Germany are the locations where the cans are filled and made ready for sale.
The Halix factory produces corona vaccine.
To date, not a single dose has been delivered to the EU.
Astrazeneca vaccine stashed in Italy - pharmaceutical giant reacts
Update from March 24th, 5:29 p.m.:
After reports about the finding of around 29 million doses of Astrazeneca vaccine in Italy, the pharmaceutical company reacted.
A spokeswoman for the company disagreed with the allegation that the cans were kept in stock.
Rather, there are several contingents of the corona vaccine that still have to go through quality control.
With a corresponding release, 13 million of the vaccine doses should go to poorer countries as part of the Covax program.
The remaining 16 million cans would be intended for delivery to Europe, the vast majority of them as early as March.
In addition, no deliveries to other countries are currently planned.
Astrazeneca vaccine: authorities found 29 million doses of vaccine - manufacturer kept them secret
First report from March 24th, 3:03 p.m .:
Anagni - Astrazeneca * has caused a stir over and over again in recent weeks.
Vaccination stop due to unclear connections with thrombosis, lack of deliveries to the EU.
Italian authorities have now reportedly discovered millions of doses of the manufacturer's vaccine at a plant in Anagni.
The find confuses.
29 million doses of vaccine were stored in Italy: At the urging of the EU Commission, an investigation was carried out at the Astrazeneca bottling plant in Agnani.
Apparently rightly, because the authorities found numerous batches of vaccine * that the company had previously kept secret.
According to information from the dpa, they were manufactured in the Dutch factory Halix in Leiden.
The vaccine was then bottled in the Italian bottling company Catalent in Anagni, where the 29 million doses have now been found.
According to reports from the Italian newspaper
La Stampa
, they were about to be extradited to the UK.
The EU confirmed this information to the
dpa
.
The explosive thing about it: Astrazeneca is behind schedule with deliveries to the EU.
So far, the manufacturer has only delivered 16.6 million doses of the Corona * vaccine to the EU.
By the middle of the year it should also only be 100 million.
220 million were originally planned.
Astrazeneca vaccine: Ursula von der Leyen becomes clear - "This is the message to Astrazeneca"
The find could further harden the fronts between the EU and Astrazeneca.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen already made it clear last week: “We have the opportunity to ban a planned export.
That is the message to Astrazeneca: You first fulfill your contract with Europe before you start delivering to other countries, ”she told the newspapers of the
Funke media group
.
In order to keep the vaccine in the EU, the EU export controls for Corona * vaccines are to be tightened considerably.
This means that exports from the EU could be stopped more frequently in the future.
The EU Commission recently decided to take two measures.
The control mechanism, which was introduced at the beginning of February, should no longer contain any exceptions for partner and developing countries.
This means that all planned exports must be reported and approved.
In addition, stops can no longer only be made after unfulfilled contracts.
An additional standard of “reciprocity and proportionality” should be maintained.
The first thing to do is to get an even more detailed overview of exports and to ensure that the European Union is supplied fairly, said an EU representative.
(chd with dpa) * Merkur.de is part of IPPEN.MEDIA
List of rubric lists: © Soeren Stache / dpa
