The European Commission actually confirms the indiscretion, reported by Reuters on Tuesday evening, that AstraZeneca has communicated its intention to cut deliveries of anti-Covid vaccines.
«Discussions with AstraZeneca on the delivery calendar continue – replies a Commission spokesman to the request for confirmation – the company is reviewing the calendar and is consolidating it, based on all available production sites, in Europe and outside. The Commission expects an improved timetable proposal to be presented to it.'
AstraZeneca had already halved, from 80 to 40 million doses (initially to 31 million, then brought them back to 40 million after the Commission's reaction), the deliveries of doses to the EU expected for the first quarter, motivating them with unspecified production problems (apparently a problem with the "harvest" of the adenovirus in the Belgian plant of Hénogen/Novasep) without providing any guarantee for the second quarter. Now the confirmation has arrived that the cut in supplies from the Anglo-Swedish multinational will also affect the second quarter. And it promises to be heavy: according to what was reported by Reuters, deliveries should go from 180 million to less than 90 million. AstraZeneca was central to the EU vaccine program, but delivery delays are slowing down vaccination programs in several member countries, including Italy. The Italian government, however, has given its willingness to the EU to activate the production of vaccines in Italian industrial plants. Other EU countries have done the same. The issue will be on the Council table at Thursday's meeting in which Mario Draghi will also participate, for the first time in his new role as Italian Prime Minister.
