The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, launched a legal action against AstraZeneca on April 23 for “violation of the advance purchase agreement” of anti-Covid vaccines. Stefan de Keersmaecker, spokesman for the Commission’s Health, confirmed this in a press briefing, highlighting that the contractual terms “were not respected” and the company was unable to “present a reliable strategy to ensure timely delivery of doses. “. The EU’s objective, the spokesman stressed, is only to “ensure the rapid delivery of a sufficient number of doses”, as promised by the reciprocal agreements. The executive has kicked off the lawsuit after having received the okay of all 27 member states, apparently regrouped after the hesitations that emerged last week on the effectiveness and appropriateness of a legal proceeding against the company.
AstraZeneca’s 200 million “hole”
Under the terms of the contract, AstraZeneca should have delivered a total of 300 million doses to the EU in the first six months of 2021 alone, out of a total of 400 million doses agreed with Palazzo Berlaymont. In fact, the company delivered just 30 million doses in the first quarter and is expected to deliver another 70 million by June, resulting in a shortage of 200 million drugs compared to what was announced in Brussels. The company has always justified the “hole” in the supply by citing technical problems in production, but the Commission has always been skeptical of the company’s defensive line and asked on several occasions for some more clarification on a mistake that cost several delays to the schedule. of vaccinations on the Continent.
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The hypothesis of a legal action had already been aired in the past, but it came to a formalization only after the meeting of Coreper (the committee of permanent representatives) on 23 April last. Now it will be necessary to understand the evolution of the investigation and if, and how, the EU will be able to obtain a “reimbursement” of the doses in the hoped time. As also highlighted by Sole 24 Ore, one of the main weaknesses in the relationship between Brussels and the company is dictated precisely by the pre-purchase contract signed by the two parties: the company undertakes, on paper, to supply the doses according to “the greatest possible effort ». A formula that could prove useful now in the face of the judicial offensive in Brussels, given that the document made – partially – public does not seem to mention mandatory dates for the delivery of drugs.
The company: sorry, we will defend ourselves in court
Reached by Il Sole 24 Ore, the company refers to an official statement where it says it is “regretted” by the decision and declares that it will “defend itself strongly in court”. The company claims to have fully respected the advance purchase agreement and anticipates that “it is about to supply almost 50 million doses to EU countries by the end of April, in line with our forecasts”, dismissing the dispute as “without merit”. from Brussels. Vaccines, the companies continue, are “difficult to produce, as evidenced by the challenges that several companies are facing on supplies in Europe and the rest of the world.”