Panacea Biotec’s Stock Gains Most In 10 Months On Deal To Produce Sputnik V Vaccine
Panacea Biotec has signed a pact to produce 100 million doses of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine in India per year.
Shares of Panacea Biotec Ltd. surged the most in 10 months after the drugmaker signed a pact to produce 100 million doses of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine in India per year.
The production of Sputnik V at Panacea Biotec’s sites will help facilitate the global supply of the vaccine to international partners of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, the pharma company said in an exchange filing.
As of date, Sputnik V vaccine has been registered in 59 countries with a total population of more than 1.5 billion. Its efficacy rate, according to the medical journal Lancet, is 91.6%.
“Panacea Biotec will produce Sputnik V in its internationally accredited facilities complying with strict GMP (good manufacturing practices) standards and pre-qualified by WHO,” Rajesh Jain, managing director at Panacea Biotec, was quoted as saying in the filing.
Shares of Panacea Biotec gained as much as 20% around 10:15 a.m. on Tuesday to Rs 221.25 apiece.
Russia had announced a tripling of its production of Sputnik V vaccine in March after a deal with Gland Pharma Ltd. The drugmaker will supply 252 million shots of the vaccine from the fourth quarter of 2021.
RDIF has also signed a pact with Strides Pharma Ltd.’s biopharma division, Stelis Biopharma, for the supply of 200 million doses, sufficient to vaccinate 100 million people. The fund in September 2020, had partnered Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. to conduct clinical trials of the Sputnik V vaccine, and distribute it in India. Then in November, RDIF and pharma firm Hetero agreed to produce more than 100 million doses per year of the vaccine in the country.
Dr. Reddy’s on March 29 said it expects the vaccine to get approval from the Indian regulators over the next few weeks.
