Coronavirus: Thailand bets on China’s Sinovac vaccine; India has ‘no concerns’ over AstraZeneca shots

Thai drug regulator expected to approve Sinovac’s shots for emergency use this month, as India ordered 10 million more AstraZeneca doses

Elsewhere, South Korea’s PM called for businesses in Seoul to comply with virus curbs, and Malaysia eased some lockdown restrictions

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A worker performs a quality check in the packaging facility of Chinese vaccine maker Sinovac Biotech in September last year. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:19pm, 9 Feb 2021Updated: 11:26pm, 9 Feb 2021

Thailand will rely on Covid-19 vaccines from China’s Sinovac Biotech to kick off an inoculation drive that aims to cover about two-thirds of the nation’s eligible population by the end of this year, potentially paving the way for a full reopening of its tourism industry.

The Thai drug regulator is expected to approve Sinovac’s shots for emergency use parallel to the arrival of the first shipment of 200,000 doses later this month, Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Monday. But the bulk of the nation’s vaccine needs will be met from AstraZeneca’s shots to be locally produced by a Thai drug maker, he said.

Thai authorities were earlier betting on the delivery of 50,000 AstraZeneca vaccine shots to begin inoculation of its frontline health workers from February 14, but the British-Swedish firm’s dispute with the European Union has delayed supplies to the Southeast Asian nation. The Bank of Thailand has said the pace of economic recovery this year hinges on the success of a vaccine roll-out and the return of foreign tourists, and Anutin said economic growth will rebound once the health care concerns are addressed.

“The big plan is to use AstraZeneca vaccines to distribute to everyone in Thailand, starting from June onwards,” Anutin said in an interview on Monday. “It’ll take until the end of the year to complete 63 million doses. The coverage will be beyond 60 per cent to 65 per cent of the population,” excluding those below 18 and pregnant women, he said.

Anutin Charnvirakul, Thailand's deputy prime minister and health minister. Photo: Bloomberg

Siam Bioscience, which has an agreement with AstraZeneca to manufacture its vaccine locally, will be able to supply at least 10 million doses a month to the government’s vaccination programme, Anutin said. The initial output from Siam Bioscience will be exclusively available to Thailand and the AstraZeneca vaccine remains “our preferred option to secure and guarantee on-time delivery”, he said.

Siam Bioscience’s plant has a production capacity of up to 200 million doses per year and the firm, with links to the Thai monarchy, plans to export to countries in the Southeast Asia.

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