Aurobindo Pharma Limited has entered into a sub-license agreement for a generic version of Pfizer’s Covid-19 oral treatment drug Nirmatrelvir with the UN-backed Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), headquartered in Geneva.

The sub-license is for manufacturing and supplying the generic drug product to 95 countries, including India. Earlier, MPP singed a voluntary licensing agreement with Pfizer for sub-licensing this Covid-19 treatment product to qualified generic drugmakers.

Nirmatrelvir in combination with ritonavir co-pack has received emergency use/conditional authorisation for Covid-19 treatment in certain populations by USFDA, the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (UKMHRA) and nearly 50 other countries).

“We are extremely happy to partner with Medicines Patent Pool to bring this treatment option for Covid-19 to low and middle income countries,’‘ Nithyananda Reddy, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, Aurobindo said in a release on Thursday.

Hyderabad-based Aurobindo has already developed and commercialised ritonavir which is used as a booster along with Nirmatrelvir.

“We are excited to work on this molecule and will soon make it available commercially at an affordable price for these markets after due process of registration and approval in various countries includign DCGI in India. This combination will be a very valuable addition to our portfolio along with Molnaflu (molnupiravir) for treatment of Covid-19,” he added.

For Nirmatrelvir and ritonavir molecules, like other antivirals, Aurobindo enjoys backward integration with in-house API manufacturing which equips it with stronger control on supply chain and cost efficiencies.

The product will be manufactured at the company’s state of the art manufacturing facilities in India that are approved by global regulatory agencies including USFDA and UK MHRA. The company has adequate capacities to meet the global demand across 95 countries including India, the release added. 

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