French vaccine company Valneva on Wednesday said it had won approval from the European Commission for a deal to supply up to 60 million doses of its potential Covid-19 vaccine, VLA2001, as the EU speeds up its fight against rising infections.
"We are grateful to the European Commission for its support and are eager to help address the ongoing pandemic," said Valneva chief executive Thomas Lingelbach.
The announcement came as the EU attempts to speed up its fight against rising Covid-19 cases. "The Valneva vaccine adds another option to our broad portfolio, once it is proven to be safe and effective by the European Medicines Agency," EU health commissioner Stella Kyriakides said. "The message remains the same: trust the science, and vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate."
Traditional technology could have an edge
Valneva is hoping its candidate, which uses more traditional technology than the mRNA vaccines, could be a more reassuring option for Europeans still reluctant to be immunised.
While mRNA vaccines induce an immune response that targets just the spike protein of the coronavirus, the Valneva vaccine aims to stimulate an immune response to the entire virus, which could give it an edge in the fight.
On October 18, Valneva said its vaccine demonstrated efficacy "at least as good, if not better" than AstraZeneca's shot in a late-stage trial comparing the two, with significantly fewer adverse side effects.
Valneva's trial was conducted while the highly-transmissible Delta variant of the coronavirus was already circulating widely.
The study also showed that Valneva's vaccine, given in two shots 28 days apart, prompted significantly fewer adverse reactions than the AstraZeneca vaccine, such as arm pain and fever, the company said.
The European Commission said the contract with Valneva provides the possibility for EU member states to purchase nearly 27 million doses in 2022.
Member states can then make a further order of up to 33 million additional vaccines in 2023.
The deal includes the possibility to adapt the vaccine to new variant strains.
It comes as a relief for Valneva after the European Commission in April said conditions to conclude a deal had not been met. Then, in September, Britain scrapped a contract for about 100 million doses of the vaccine over concerns that it might not receive approval.
(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS)
