Vaccine maker’s expansion bid for Covid jabs in Britain

A manufacturer of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is in talks with other developers about producing their Covid jabs in Britain. 

CP Pharmaceuticals, owned by Indian drug-maker Wockhardt, has been producing Astra’s vaccine at its plant in Wrexham since last year. 

Last year, the UK Government signed an 18-month contract to reserve manufacturing capacity to make around 350million doses of Covid vaccines a year in Wrexham. 

The contract was later extended to 24 months until August 2022. 

Now, in its annual report, Wockhardt has told investors it has been, ‘exploring opportunities to tie up with various vaccine developers for manufacturing and/or providing fill-finish facilities for Covid19 dosages’. 

Three vaccines are authorised for use in the UK – AstraZeneca, Moderna – which is made in Switzerland and the US – and Pfizer, largely made in Belgium.