AstraZeneca agrees to supply Europe with 400 mn doses of Covid-19 vaccine

The deal is the latest by AstraZeneca to pledge supply of its vaccine to governments who have scrambled to agree advance purchases of promising coronavirus vaccines

AstraZeneca Plc said on Saturday it signed a contract with European governments to supply the region with its potential vaccine against the coronavirus, the British drugmaker's latest deal to pledge its drug to help combat the pandemic.

The contract is for up to 400 million doses of the vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford, the company said, adding that it was looking to expand manufacturing of the vaccine, which it said it would provide for no profit during the pandemic.

Deliveries will start by the end of 2020.

The deal is the first contract signed by Europe's Inclusive Vaccines Alliance (IVA), a