(Newswire.net— August 18, 2020) — The Brazilian federal state of Paraná is in negotiations for the production of the Russian vaccine for COVID-19, despite the fact that no mass tests have yet been conducted for it.
It is not clear yet whether the research institute there will receive the necessary regulatory approval in Brazil. Paraná’s Technology Institute, known as Tecpar, said it may import the vaccine earlier than the announced production date if Brazil’s federal health regulator Anvisa allows it.
The Institute “Tecpar” surprised Brazilian regulators and health experts, and some expressed doubts about the necessary capacity of that institute for the production of large quantities of the new vaccine reported Reuters.
The Paran government said that Governor Ratinho Junior would meet with the Russian ambassador to Brazil to discuss the terms of the agreement regarding the production and import of the vaccine.
Speaking from Brasilia at a videoconference, Russian ambassador Sergey Akopov said that the purpose of the partnership with Paraná state was “to assist each other in developing, testing and eventually producing the vaccine.”
With the largest number of coronavirus patients outside the United States, Brazil has become a go-to for mass clinical testing of potential vaccines.
Brazilian officials have promised to start producing British and Chinese vaccines within a year, but experts warn that it may take up to twice as long.
Moscow’s decision last week to approve its vaccine before the completion of all phases of clinical trials caused concern among some experts. So far, only about ten percent of clinical trials have been successful.
Moscow announced its breakthrough on Tuesday, after less than two months of human testing, as proof of Russia’s scientific superiority.
Brazil has the world’s worse coronavirus outbreak after the United States, with over 3,164,785 confirmed cases and 104,201 deaths as of Wednesday.