By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) shares fell more than 1% Friday after a Brussels judge’s ordered it to deliver millions of doses of its Covid-19 shots to the European Union, with a penalty if it is unable to do so.
According to an AP report, the European Commission said that the judge had ordered the company to respect a delivery schedule of 15 million doses by July 26, 20 million doses by August 23 and 15 million doses by September 27.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told AP the decision confirms the company had failed to honor its commitments.
The judge also ordered a fine of 10 euros ($12) for every dose not delivered.
The company also claimed victory. “All other measures sought by the European Commission have been dismissed, and in particular the Court found that the European Commission has no exclusivity or right of priority over all other contracting parties,” AstraZeneca said in a note.
The vaccine-maker said the company has supplied more than 70 million doses to the EU and will substantially exceed 80.2 million by the end of this month.
AstraZeneca was seen as the backbone of the EU’s vaccine rollout. Its contract with the European Commission foresaw 300 million doses being distributed initially, with an option for another 100 million, but the speed of deliveries was far slower than the company originally thought.