The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund) and Panacea Biotec have launched of production of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus.

The first batch produced at Panacea Biotec’s facilities at Baddi will be shipped to the Gamaleya Center for quality control. Full-scale production of the vaccine is due to start this summer. The company’s facilities comply with GMP standards and are prequalified by WHO.

Sputnik V was registered in India under the emergency use authorization procedure on April 12, 2021, and vaccination against coronavirus with the Russian vaccine started on May 14. As announced in April, RDIF and Panacea have agreed to produce 100 million doses per year of Sputnik V.

To date, Sputnik V has been registered in 66 countries globally with a total population of over 3.2 billion people. The efficacy of Sputnik V is 97.6 per cent based on the analysis of data on coronavirus infection rate among those in Russia vaccinated with both components of Sputnik V from December 5, 2020, to March 31, 2021.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO, RDIF, said, “Launch of production in India in partnership with Panacea Biotec marks an important step for helping the country fight the pandemic. Production of Sputnik V supports efforts of India’s authorities to leave behind the acute phase of coronavirus as soon as possible while the vaccine will also be exported at a later stage to help prevent the spread of the virus in other countries around the world.”

Dr Rajesh Jain, MD, Panacea Biotec, said, “This marks a significant step as we initiate production of Sputnik V. Together with RDIF, we hope to help bring a sense of normalcy back to people across the country and around the world.”