Pfizer tells Moneycontrol it is supplying vaccines only to national governments. The response comes a day after the Maharashtra government said it received bids from intermediaries that claimed to have tie-ups with Pfizer and other vaccine makers.
Pfizer’s vaccine is based on genetic material or mRNA.
Neither Pfizer nor any of its global affiliates, including in India, have authorised anyone to import, market and distribute the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID 19 vaccine, the American pharma giant told Moneycontrol on May 26.
The pharma major was responding to questions if the company or its affiliates had submitted an expression of interest (EoI) for supplying COVID-19 vaccines in response to a global tender floated by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM).
“As stated earlier, during this pandemic phase, across the world, Pfizer is supplying its COVID-19 vaccine only to central governments and supra-national organisations for deployment in national immunisation programmes,” a Pfizer spokersperson said.
“We continue to have ongoing discussions with the Government of India towards making our vaccine available for use nationally.”
Also read: Pfizer asks India for pre-order, advance payment for COVID-19 vaccines: Report
The Maharashtra government on May 25 said it had received eight bids for supply of vaccines. These bids were received from intermediaries that claimed to have tie-ups with the manufacturers of the Sputnik V, Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca. The intermediaries were quoting prices between Rs 800 and Rs 2,500 for a full dose, which is two jabs.
The state government also said had extended the process by a week to enable various bidders to submit documents in support of the bids in accordance with the MCGM’s global EoI.
Viswanath Pilla is a business journalist with 14 years of reporting experience. Based in Mumbai, Pilla covers pharma, healthcare and infrastructure sectors for Moneycontrol.
