The European Union and United Kingdom-based drug giant AstraZeneca announced Friday that it had reached a settlement in a dispute over a shortfall in coronavirus vaccine deliveries.
The agreement will see the firm deliver the rest of the 300 million doses it promised under contracts with the EU before the end of March 2022, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported, bringing to an end a battle in the Belgian courts.
The settlement clears a major overhang for AstraZeneca, whose cheap and easily transportable vaccine has faced several setbacks, including the lawsuit and worries about possible side effects. It also allows the EU to speed up inoculations amid shortages.
Under the settlement, AstraZeneca has committed to deliver 60 million doses of its vaccine, Vaxzevria, by the end of the third quarter this year, 75 million by the end of the fourth quarter and 65 million by the end of the first quarter of 2022, as Reuters reported.
The European Commission launched legal action against AstraZeneca in April for not respecting its contract for the supply of COVID-19 vaccines and for not having a "reliable" plan to ensure timely deliveries.
The EU's executive body said that under the new agreement, member states will be provided with regular delivery schedules and if there are any delayed doses, capped rebates would be applied.
"There are significant differences in vaccination rates between our member states, and the continued availability of vaccines, including AstraZeneca's, remain crucial," said EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides.
Ruud Dobber, executive vice president of the Biopharmaceuticals Business Unit at AstraZeneca, said in a written statement he was "very pleased that we have been able to reach a common understanding which allows us to move forward and work in collaboration with the European Commission to help overcome the pandemic."
Dobber said in a statement that the company is "fully committed" to manufacturing the vaccine "for Europe following the release for supply of more than 140 million doses to date at no profit." He added that the company also would work with the commission to support COVAX, the global vaccine-sharing program.
Tens of millions of doses already have been supplied to EU member nations but not as many as the 27-nation bloc expected. AstraZeneca said that, along with its partners, it has supplied more than 1.1 billion doses of vaccine to over 170 countries, and that approximately two-thirds have gone to low- and lower-middle-income countries.
A Belgian court ruled in June that AstraZeneca had committed a "serious breach" of its contract with the EU. But the company said the ruling showed that "AstraZeneca has fully complied with its agreement" with the European Commission.
AstraZeneca was seen as a key pillar of the EU’s vaccine rollout. The legal tussle over delivery obligations tarnished the company’s image, but the commission has no issue with the quality of the firm’s vaccines.