Taiwan says it is discussing making COVID-19 vaccines for U.S. firms (updated)

Greatek Electronics

05/06/2021 09:01

(Recasts, adds quotes, details)
    TAIPEI, June 5 (Reuters) - Taiwan is in talks with U.S.
companies about making their COVID-19 vaccines, following
similar talks with European firms, Health Minister Chen
Shih-chung said on Saturday.
    Taiwan, like much of the world, has been trying to speed up
its vaccination programme following a spike in domestic cases,
but has been stymied by global supply shortages.
    Chen told reporters that they previously had talks with
European companies he did not name about producing their
vaccines under licence.
    "Only recently have we started to have talks with U.S.
companies, to see if it's possible or not to carry out relevant
subcontracting work," he added, without providing details.
    Taiwan has ordered around five million shots from U.S. firm
Moderna Inc  MRNA.O , of which 150,000 have arrived. It has
ordered 10 millions shots from British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca
PLC  AZN.L .
    Taiwan, also in talks with BioNTech SE  22UAy.DE , blames
China - which claims the island as its own territory - for
blocking a deal with the German company earlier this year.
    Johnson & Johnson  JNJ.N  said on Friday it has been in
talks with Taiwan about providing its COVID-19 vaccine to the
island since last year.   
    Around 3% of Taiwan's 23.5 million people have received at
least one shot of a vaccine. Japan on Friday donated 1.24
million doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N2NM03O
    Although Taiwan's domestic cases have not exploded, they are
not falling dramatically either. Chen announced 511 new domestic
infections on Saturday.
    While cases have been concentrated in Taipei and its
neighbouring city, health authorities are trying to stop an
outbreak at two chip packagers in Miaoli, in the north of the
island, King Yuan Electronics  2449.TW  and Greatek Electronics
 2441.TW . urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N2NM0ED
    However, the government has signalled it is not planning for
now on further raising the alert level, now one rung below full
lockdown.
    "Discussions are continuing with experts, but at present
there have been no suggestions for a lockdown," Chen said.
    Taiwan has reported 10,956 cases since the pandemic began,
with 225 deaths.

 (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and
William Mallard)
 ((ben.blanchard@thomsonreuters.com;))