Shilpa Medicare ties up with Dr Reddy's for production of Sputnik V vaccine

Shilpa Medicare on Monday, May 17, 2021, announced that the company, via its wholly-owned subsidiary Shilpa Biologicals Private Limited (SBPL), has entered into a three-year Definitive Agreement with Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited (DRL) for the production supply of the Sputnik V vaccine from its integrated biologics R&D cum manufacturing centre at Dharwad, Karnataka.

The targeted production of the dual vector Sputnik V for the first 12 months is 50 million doses (50 million of Component 1 and 50 million of component 2), from the date of start of commercial production.

DRL has partnered with HVIRDIF for the clinical development of the vaccine and has distribution rights in geographies including India. DRL will facilitate the transfer of the sputnik technology to SBPL. Under the agreement, SBPL will be responsible for the manufacture of the vaccine, while DRL is responsible for the distribution/marketing of the vaccine in its marketing territories.

The companies are also exploring the option to manufacture Sputnik Light, a single-dose version of the vaccine in the near future.

The company views Biologics as a strategic growth area and has made significant investments in setting up a High end, Flexible Biologics facility in Dharwad to cater to the requirements of the fast-growing biologics field, which include the adenoviral, subunit & DNA vaccines, Monoclonal antibodies & fusion proteins.