Bharat Biotech International Limited has commenced export of its Covid vaccine, Covaxin. “Long-pending export orders have been executed during November. Exports will be further expanded during the following months,” said the Hyderabad-based company in a release on Monday.

With the number of countries that have granted emergency-use approvals for Covaxin increasing, exports to additional countries will also commence from December, it added. “We thank the Government of India for approving exports. Covaxin will now become an integral part of the global fight against this pandemic,” said the release.

Shipments

When contacted, a company source told BusinessLine : “The first set of shipments are being delivered to about 10 countries and these are mostly direct shipments.”

Covaxin, which has also been granted emergency-use listing (EUL) by the World Health Organization (WHO) recently, has secured emergency-use authorisations in 20 countries, while regulatory approvals are in process in about 60 countries as on today. “Several countries are also evaluating Covaxin as a booster dose in adults and for children,” said the source.

The vaccine-maker is now in comfortable situation to meet both domestic and global demand, as it had ramped production in a phased manner at its multiple facilities in Hyderabad, Malur and Ankleshwar. The company has been able to ramp up Covaxin manufacturing capacity within a short time, mainly due to the availability of its specially designed Bio-Safety Level-3 production campuses to manufacture inactivated viral vaccines.

The company has a target of reaching about one billion doses annually by year-end. “We are on track to reach the target comfortably,” said the source.

Ocugen, the company’s partner in the US, is in the process of obtaining approval from US Food and Drug Administration for Covaxin and also emergency-use authorisation for the use of the vaccine in children.

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