Deal to produce 100m Sputnik V doses in India

The Russian Direct Investment Fund and India's leading pharma giant Hetero have agreed to produce over 100 million doses of Sputnik V in India by the beginning of 2021. Sputnik V's interim trial results have demonstrated a 91.4 per cent efficacy rate.

New Delhi: In a major development, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and India's leading pharma giant Hetero have agreed to produce over 100 million doses of Sputnik V in India by the beginning of 2021. The joint declaration between RDIF which is Russia's sovereign wealth fund and Hetero is likely to give a boost to the fight against Covid19 pandemic.

"We are pleased to collaborate with RDIF as a manufacturing partner for the most anticipated Sputnik V vaccine for the treatment of COVID-19. While we look forward to the clinical trial results in India, we believe that manufacturing of the product locally is crucial to enable swift access to patients. This collaboration is another step towards our commitment in the battle against COVID-19 and a part of realising the objective of 'Make in India' campaign as envisioned by our Prime Minister," said B Murali Krishna Reddy, director-international marketing of Hetero Labs Limited.

India has already started Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the Russian vaccine. Recent interim trial results of SputnikV have reconfirmed the high efficacy of the vaccine. Evaluation of efficacy was carried out among volunteers (n=18,794) 28 days after receiving the first dose (7 days after the second phase) of the vaccine or placebo upon reaching the second control point of the trial in compliance with the critical trial protocol. The analysis demonstrated a 91.4 per cent efficacy rate for the Sputnik vaccine.

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The analysis said that the uniqueness of the Russian vaccine lies in the use of two different vectors based on the human adenovirus, which allows for a stronger and longer-term immune response as compared to vaccine using one and the same vector for two doses.

Preliminary data on volunteers on the 42nd day after the first dose (equivalent to 21 days after the second dose), which they have already formed a stable immune response, indicates the efficacy rate of the vaccine is above 95 per cent. Currently, phase II and III clinical trial of SputnikV is going on in India. Phase III clinical trials are also approved and going on in Belarus, the UAE, Venezuela and other countries.

Government from 50 countries have requested for more than 1.2 billion doses of SputnikV vaccine. The vaccine supplies for the global market will be produced by Reid's international partners in India, Brazil, China, South Korea and other countries.