Novavax is struggling with bottlenecks in important supplies for vaccine

The US pharmaceutical company Novavax is struggling with bottlenecks in important supplies in the production of its Covid-19 vaccine. The targeted total production of 150 million vaccine doses per month will probably only be reached in the third quarter, said a Novavax spokeswoman. Originally, this was targeted in the middle of the year. Novavax CEO Stanley Erck had spoken at the end of January that the group could reach its full production capacity of 150 million cans per month in May or June. A company spokeswoman referred to delivery bottlenecks, for example with disposable bioreactors and filters, which Novavax needs for vaccine production and which are now leading to the delay. Therefore, according to an insider, the planned delivery contract for up to 200 million vaccine doses with the European Union, which should actually be wrapped up at the beginning of the year, is also being delayed. The vaccine has not yet been approved. According to positive study results, however, the drug could receive approval in the UK this month, and in the USA it could be approved in May. In the EU, Novavax is aiming for an approval application in the second quarter. According to study results published in mid-March, the vaccine is 96 percent effective against the original coronavirus and 86 percent against the British variant. The vaccine, named NVX-CoV2373, is a protein-based vaccine candidate that was developed from the genetic sequence of Sars-CoV-2. The substance works using nanoparticle technology to generate an antigen derived from the coronavirus spike protein. The aim is to strengthen the immune response and stimulate high levels of neutralizing antibodies. The vaccine contains purified protein antigen and can neither replicate nor cause Covid-19. According to the manufacturer, it is stored at refrigerator temperature and is so stable that the existing channels of the vaccine supply chain can be used for distribution. The news is another setback for the EU vaccination campaign. US authorities previously recommended a break in vaccination with the vaccine from Johnson & Johnson until unexplained thromboses have been investigated more closely after use. This material is also already firmly planned in the schedules of many EU countries.