Britain nears $625 mln Sanofi/GSK COVID-19 vaccine deal -report

Britain nears $625 mln Sanofi/GSK COVID-19 vaccine deal -report

Reuters

, Sunday 5 Jul 2020







People are seen eating and drinking in the northern quarter of Manchester after pubs, bars and restaurants reopened following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, Manchester, Britain, July 5, 2020. (Photo: Reuters)













Britain is close to a 500 million pound ($624 million) supply deal with Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline for 60 million doses of a potential COVID-19 vaccine, the Sunday Times reported.

Clinical trials are due to start in September and Sanofi has said it expects to get approval by the first half of next year, sooner than previously anticipated.

More than 100 vaccines are being developed and tested around the world to stop the COVID-19 pandemic and governments are racing to secure supplies of vaccines even before their efficacy is proven.

A supply agreement with Sanofi and GSK would be Britain's second such deal, after it said it would buy 100 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.

Sanofi was not immediately available to comment, while a spokesman for GSK declined to comment. Both have both said they are prioritising quality over speed in developing a vaccine.

"The Government's Vaccines Task Force is actively engaging with a wide