www.globenewswire.com
Pfizer and BioNTech to Supply Canada with their BNT162 mRNA-Based Vaccine Candidate
August 05, 2020 08:00 ET
Supply to be provided over the course of 2021, subject to Health Canada approval
Agreement is part of Pfizer’s and BioNTech’s global commitment to help address the pandemic
Pfizer and BioNTech began a Phase 2b/3 safety and efficacy trial and remain on track to seek regulatory review as early as October 2020, and to manufacture globally up to 100 million doses by the end of 2020 and approximately 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021
KIRKLAND, Quebec and MAINZ, Germany, Aug. 05, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pfizer Canada and BioNTech SE (Nasdaq: BNTX, “BioNTech” or “the Company”) today announced an agreement with the Government of Canada to supply their BNT162 mRNA-based vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2, subject to clinical success and Health Canada approval.
Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed, but the terms were based on the timing of delivery and the volume of doses. As requested by the Government of Canada, deliveries of the vaccine candidate are planned for over the course of 2021.
“We continue to be committed to partnering with the Canadian government to help fight this pandemic and are pleased with their collaborative approach to addressing a national COVID-19 immunization strategy with public health officials,” said Cole C. Pinnow, President, Pfizer Canada . “With our combined efforts, we know there is no health challenge that we cannot address.”
“As the development of effective COVID-19 vaccines continues around the world, we commend the work of Pfizer and BioNTech, which will provide Canadians access to a vaccine candidate for the virus. This agreement is another critical step in our government’s efforts to keep Canadians safe and healthy as the pandemic continues to evolve,” said The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Government of Canada .
“In the face of this global health crisis, Pfizer’s purpose – breakthroughs that change patients’ lives – has taken on an even greater urgency,” said Albert Bourla, Chairman and CEO, Pfizer . “We’re harnessing our scientific expertise, and we’re marshaling our manufacturing resources in an effort to ensure that the vaccine would be available as soon as possible, if our clinical trials prove successful and regulatory approval is granted.”
“This agreement is part of our commitment to address the pandemic by supporting global supply of our vaccine candidate. Our teams are working diligently to advance the lead product candidate through clinical development in order to seek regulatory review as early as October. At the same time, Pfizer and BioNTech continue to scale up manufacturing capacities to be able to produce up to 100 million doses in 2020 and more than one billion doses in 2021. Since we initiated Project Lightspeed our aim has always been clear: Making a potential vaccine available to the public as quickly as possible – worldwide. This agreement is yet another step in that direction,” said Sean Marett, Chief Business and Chief Commercial Officer at BioNTech .
The BNT162 program is based on BioNTech’s proprietary mRNA technology and supported by Pfizer’s global vaccine development and manufacturing capabilities. The vaccine development program is evaluating at least four experimental vaccine candidates, each of which represents a unique combination of messenger RNA (mRNA) format and target antigen. The BNT162 vaccine candidates are undergoing clinical studies and are not currently approved for distribution anywhere in the world. Both collaborators are committed to developing these novel vaccines with pre-clinical and clinical data at the forefront of all their decision-making.
Recently, two of the companies’ four investigational vaccine candidates – BNT162b1 and BNT162b2 – received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This designation was granted based on preliminary data from Phase 1/2 studies that are currently ongoing in the United States and Germany as well as animal immunogenicity studies.
On July 27, Pfizer and BioNTech announced that following extensive review of preclinical and clinical data from Phase 1/2 clinical trials, and in consultation with the U.S. FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) and other global regulators, the companies selected the BNT162b2 vaccine candidate to move forward into a Phase 2/3 study. BNT162b2 encodes an optimized SARS-CoV-2 full length spike glycoprotein (S), which is the target of virus neutralizing antibodies. In the late-stage trial, the companies will study a 30 µg dose level in a 2-dose-regimen among up to 30,000 participants aged 18 to 85 years. It is expected to include approximately 120 sites globally including in regions with significant expected SARS-CoV-2 transmission. BNT162b2 has received Fast Track designation from the U.S. FDA.
Assuming clinical success, Pfizer and BioNTech are on track to seek regulatory review for BNT162b2 as early as October 2020 and, if regulatory authorization or approval is obtained, plan to supply up to 100 million doses worldwide by the end of 2020 and approximately 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021.
In addition to engagements with governments, Pfizer and BioNTech have provided an expression of interest for possible supply to the COVAX Facility, a mechanism established by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and World Health Organization (WHO) that aims to provide governments, including those in the emerging markets, with early access to a large portfolio of COVID-19 candidate vaccines using a range of technology platforms, produced by multiple manufacturers across the world.