Sputnik V Covid vaccine importer threatens Pak to re-export doses if desired price not met

Pakistan may have to bear another humiliation as the Russian Sputnik V COVID vaccine exporter has warned and threatened Pakistan to "re-export" the 50,000 doses if the company's desired price is not set by the government soon. 

As per ANI, an official of the federal government told Geo.tv on condition of anonymity, "AGP Limited, which imported the 50,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine, has threatened to re-export the shipment if their desired price is not fixed by the government. The drug pricing committee of DRAP (Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan had recommended Rs 8,449 for two doses of the vaccine, which is not acceptable to the importer."

AGP also said that selling the shipment to some other country was "an option if an appropriate price is not fixed" for their product. During the verbal communication, the importer of the Sputnik V COVID vaccine threatened that they had the option of re-exporting it or selling it to some other country if an appropriate rate, as per the government's formula of 40 percent in addition to the landing cost of the product, is not applied while fixing the price. 

The Official said, "The government is already under harsh criticism for the price recommended by DRAP's pricing committee at Pakistani Rs 8,449. It was calculated on the basis of a landing cost of USD 30 but people are comparing it with the cost of the Russian vaccine in India and criticising the government for fixing a higher price as compared to the neighbouring country."

"The government's price of Rs 8,449 is not affordable for us because in addition to landing cost, there is distributor margin, storage and transportation costs, and hospitals and institutions will also take their service charges," an official of the company said.

Earlier, the government officials had said that AGP wanted a retail price between Rs 12,500-13,000 for two doses of their vaccine based on their landing cost, freight charges, cold storage, and other expenses. 

Sputnik V approved for emergency use in Pakistan

Russia's Sputnik V is one of four COVID vaccines approved for emergency use in Pakistan, in addition to those by China's Sinopharm and CanSinoBio, and the AstraZeneca-Oxford University shot.

Recently, the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) had decided to cap prices of Russian, Chinese vaccines imported by private firms after a sharp increase in coronavirus cases. 

Last week, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi were tested positive for coronavirus. In a pursuit to curb the fresh rise in Coronavirus cases, Pakistan has also imposed a travel ban from 12 countries, including South Africa, Rwanda, and Tanzania. 

(Image Credits: AP)