Moderna says it has shipped 807 million vaccine doses in 2021. Reuters
Moderna says it has shipped 807 million vaccine doses in 2021. Reuters
Moderna says it has shipped 807 million vaccine doses in 2021. Reuters
Moderna says it has shipped 807 million vaccine doses in 2021. Reuters

Moderna vaccine order for 2022 hits $18.5 billion


Laura O'Callaghan
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Moderna said it had signed agreements for $18.5 billion (£13.6bn) worth of Covid-19 vaccines for this year, along with options for a further $3.5bn (£2.5bn), including booster shots.

The pharmaceutical company in last November said the total product sales for 2022 could reach $22bn.

This was slightly higher than the average analyst estimate of $17bn, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The company said it had shipped 807 million vaccine doses in 2021.

Previously, it had said it would deliver between 700 million and 800 million doses.

The advance purchase agreements for 2022 are up from $17bn worth of commitments it had announced last year.

  • Jannik, 9, gets vaccinated in an airplane at Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany. The city is hosting a special vaccination event for children aged 5 to 11 in a decommissioned Airbus A300 Zero G. EPA
    Jannik, 9, gets vaccinated in an airplane at Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany. The city is hosting a special vaccination event for children aged 5 to 11 in a decommissioned Airbus A300 Zero G. EPA
  • People place candles in Neumarkt Square, Dresden to commemorate the 1,400 lives lost to the coronavirus in the German city. AFP
    People place candles in Neumarkt Square, Dresden to commemorate the 1,400 lives lost to the coronavirus in the German city. AFP
  • Pupils take a sample for a rapid test during the first lesson after Christmas holidays at the Freiherr-vom-Stein secondary school in Bonn, western Germany. AFP
    Pupils take a sample for a rapid test during the first lesson after Christmas holidays at the Freiherr-vom-Stein secondary school in Bonn, western Germany. AFP
  • Protesters demonstrate against Covid-19 measures and compulsory vaccination in Frankfurt, Germany. AP
    Protesters demonstrate against Covid-19 measures and compulsory vaccination in Frankfurt, Germany. AP
  • A cyclist rides past a tent where patients are undergoing coronavirus tests, at the Opera square in Paris. AFP
    A cyclist rides past a tent where patients are undergoing coronavirus tests, at the Opera square in Paris. AFP
  • A protestor in Nantes, France throws a tear gas canister during a demonstration against a bill that would transform the country's current coronavirus health pass into a 'vaccine pass'. Reuters
    A protestor in Nantes, France throws a tear gas canister during a demonstration against a bill that would transform the country's current coronavirus health pass into a 'vaccine pass'. Reuters
  • A group of young students wearing masks disinfect their hands before entering the Luis Amigo school after the Christmas holidays, in Pamplona, northern Spain. AP
    A group of young students wearing masks disinfect their hands before entering the Luis Amigo school after the Christmas holidays, in Pamplona, northern Spain. AP
  • A man receives a dose of a Covid-19 vaccine at a Red Cross centre in Rome. Reuters
    A man receives a dose of a Covid-19 vaccine at a Red Cross centre in Rome. Reuters
  • Traffic police check the green pass of public transport passengers in Turin, Italy. EPA
    Traffic police check the green pass of public transport passengers in Turin, Italy. EPA
  • Empty seats inside the stadium before a football match between Udinese and Atalanta, as coronavirus restrictions limit the capacity to 50 percent in Udine, Italy. Reuters
    Empty seats inside the stadium before a football match between Udinese and Atalanta, as coronavirus restrictions limit the capacity to 50 percent in Udine, Italy. Reuters
  • People sit in a waiting area in case of an immediate reaction after receiving booster shots at a Covid-19 vaccination centre set up in Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. AFP
    People sit in a waiting area in case of an immediate reaction after receiving booster shots at a Covid-19 vaccination centre set up in Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. AFP
  • People in Vienna scream at police as officers stop a demonstration against Austria's coronavirus restrictions. AP
    People in Vienna scream at police as officers stop a demonstration against Austria's coronavirus restrictions. AP

Analysts were expecting $19.3bn in Moderna Covid vaccine sales for 2022, according to a Bloomberg survey of analyst estimates.

After the figures were released in a statement by the drug giant on Monday, Moderna shares were up 0.2 per cent in pre-market trading in New York.

In January 2021, Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine was approved for use by the UK medicines regulator.

Last November, as a wave of Omicron crashed on to UK society, Moderna warned the highly transmissible variant could evade protection offered by its vaccine and others on the market.

The Moderna coronavirus vaccine is one of four approved for use in the UK and one of three on offer.

The AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines are also being put into people’s arms while the Janssen vaccine is not yet available in Britain, despite receiving approval.

The latest data available on UK vaccine orders show there are 77 million Moderna shots on order.

This is markedly less than the 189 million Pfizer doses and 100 million AstraZeneca shots that have been ordered, according to government data from December.

About 132 million shots of a Covid vaccine were administered to people in Britain in 2021.

Last October the Moderna vaccine was suspended for young people in Sweden, Norway and Finland as a precaution following reports of rare side effects.

Some people who had received the vaccine had developed myocarditis and pericarditis.

Myocarditis is a rare side effect of all mRNA vaccines, and is more commonly found in boys and young men compared with other sections of the population.

Data suggested it was more likely to occur after a second dose of Moderna had been administered, as opposed to a Pfizer shot.

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson watches as Andrea Botezatu receives her first Covid-19 shot, during a constituency visit to Boots pharmacy in Uxbridge, west London, on Monday. (Photo by Leon Neal / Getty Images)
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson watches as Andrea Botezatu receives her first Covid-19 shot, during a constituency visit to Boots pharmacy in Uxbridge, west London, on Monday. (Photo by Leon Neal / Getty Images)

This seems to apply regardless of which vaccine was given as the first dose.

Addressing a conference on Monday, Stephane Bancel. the chief executive of Moderna, said people aged 50 and above, those who were immuno-compromised or in other high-risk groups might require an annual booster of a Covid vaccine to acquire adequate protection against the virus.

The company said it was on track to invest between $2.5bn and $3bn in research and development this year.

Within a month it should have designated a country in which it would open a vaccine facility, it said.

Updated: January 10, 2022, 2:59 PM