AstraZeneca scours supply chain for more vaccine doses for Southeast Asia

Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca on July 24 said it is "scouring" its global supply chain to try and boost COVID-19 vaccine supplies to Thailand and Southeast Asia, Reuters reported.

COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine

The statement came after leaked letters showed last week that the drugmaker had offered to supply 5-6 million vaccine doses a month to Thailand, contradicting assertions by Thai officials that the government is owed 10 million a month and 61 million doses by end-2021.

AstraZeneca is scouring over 20 supply chains in its worldwide manufacturing network to find additional vaccines for Southeast Asia, including Thailand, said James Teague, managing director of AstraZeneca Thailand.

"We are hopeful of importing additional doses in the months ahead," he added.

Teague said AstraZeneca has delivered 9 million does so far to Thailand and will deliver 2.3 million more next week.

Thailand has fully inoculated just 5.56 percent of its population of more than 66 million so far, while 18.62 percent have received at least one dose, government data shows.

The drugmaker had previously said vaccine doses for Thailand and Southeast Asia would come from a plant of its Thai partner Siam Bioscience, owned by Thailand's king.

Siam Bioscience has not commented on reports of production shortfalls or delivery timelines.

Pressure has been mounting on the company after Thailand said it was considering imposing limits on exports of locally manufactured AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines to shore up domestic supplies, a move that could hit its neighbours, some of which are battling similar or more severe COVID-19 crises./.

VNA