RDIF and “Torlak” Institute agree to produce Sputnik V vaccine in Serbia

Moscow, March 25, 2021 – The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund) and Institute of Virology, Vaccines and Sera “Torlak” announce the agreement to produce Sputnik V, the world’s first registered vaccine against coronavirus, in Serbia.

Serbia will become the first country in Southern Europe to produce Sputnik V. The vaccine could be exported to other countries of the region at a later stage.

Production of Sputnik V is due to start by May 2021 at facilities of the “Torlak” Institute. “Torlak” Institute is Serbia’s national vaccine producer supplying healthcare institutions in the country with vaccines for the compulsory immunization program.

First batch of Sputnik V was delivered to Serbia on December 30, 2020. Vaccination against coronavirus with the Russian vaccine started in Serbia on January 6, 2021.

To date Sputnik V has been registered in 56 countries globally with total population of over 1.5 billion people. Efficacy of Sputnik V is 91.6% as confirmed by the data published in the Lancet, one of the world's oldest and most respected medical journals. The vaccine is based on a proven and well-studied platform of human adenoviral vectors and uses two different vectors for the two shots in a course of vaccination, providing immunity with a longer duration than vaccines using the same delivery mechanism for both shots.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, said:

“We are grateful to the Government of Serbia for the constant support and trust in Sputnik V. Serbia was among the first countries in the world to approve Sputnik V and use it to protect the population against coronavirus. Production of the Russian vaccine by “Torlak” Institute provides for easier logistics and will also help to speed up the vaccination program in the country.”

Nenad Popovic, Minister of Innovations and Technological Development and Co-Chairman of the Intergovernmental Committee for Cooperation between Serbia and Russia, said:

"We are grateful to the President of Russia, Mr. Vladimir Putin, the Government of the Russian Federation and the Russian Direct Investment Fund for their support in preserving the health and lives of people in the Republic of Serbia. The production of the Sputnik V vaccine at the Torlak Institute will strengthen the capacities of our country to fight against the coronavirus pandemic and open new perspectives for the distribution of this vaccine in the region of Southern Europe. Transfer of technologies for the production of Sputnik V vaccine from Russia to Serbia will contribute to the renewal of our country's sovereignty in the field of vaccine production, which will be an important resource of every country in the future".