South Korean firm to produce 150 million doses a year of Russian COVID-19 vaccine: RDIF
Friday, November 13, 2020, 17:12 GMT+7
MOSCOW -- Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said on Friday it had signed a deal with South Korea’s GL Rapha for the biotechnology firm to produce over 150 million doses per year of the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine.
The South Korean firm is expected to begin production next month, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said in a statement.
The doses, produced in South Korea, will be intended for global distribution, it said.
Developers of the Russian vaccine said on Wednesday that the vaccine was found to be 92% effective at protecting people from COVID-19 according to interim trial results.
Russia is ramping up its domestic production capacities, which will be focused on meeting its own needs.
However, it has also reached agreements to produce 500 million doses annually abroad, which will supply other countries.
RDIF, which is backing the vaccine’s development and is responsible for its marketing abroad, said it had orders for more than 1.2 billion doses of Sputnik V.
