Official UK procurement notice
Molnupiravir (EIDD-2801/MK-4482) Supply Agreement for Pandemic Purposes
Authority: Department of Health & Social Care (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionVaccines have been shown to be highly effective in the fight against COVID-19, to date. However, there is a cohort of individuals who either cannot take the vaccine or for whom it is ineffective. There is therefore an urgent need to find an effective alternative. So far there are no primary care antiviral drugs that can be easily dispensed specifically to treat SARS-CoV-2 and prevent its transmission in the community. This agreement is for the procurement of 480,000 units of Molnupiravir (EIDD-2801/MK-4482). It is one of the first oral and direct-acting antiviral drugs globally and the first to receive regulatory approval and is part of the UK’s multi-layered approach to COVID-19.
CPV: Pharmaceutical products
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1Procurement of Molnupiravir (EIDD-2801/MK-4482)Awarded
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record · publisher note attached- Procedure method
- Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition
- Legal basis
- CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
- Procurement category
- Goods
- Notice status
- Awarded without competition
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Direct award (no call for competition)
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 11 Nov 2021, 17:48 GMT
- Last source update
- 11 Nov 2021, 17:48 GMT
- Authority reference
C52111- FTS notice number
2021/S 000-028271- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-02f5dcFind a Tender
- Why no open competition
The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator due to absence of competition for technical reasons; Extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable for the contracting authority/entity and in accordance with the strict conditions stated in the directive
- Published justification
Please see Annex D1 attached for more information.
Publisher note: Information on contract value is being withheld due to commercial sensitivity under Regulation 50(6)(b) and (c) as the publication of the price may enable competitors to calculate cost per dose. This will (i) commercially prejudice the supplier in its ongoing negotiations with other national governments; (ii) commercially prejudice the contracting authority in its ongoing negotiations with other vendors and (iii) impact fair competition between vendors.
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merck Sharpe and Dohme (UK) Limited | — | — | Awarded |
Contracts
Contract 028271-2021-1 · Merck Sharpe and Dohme (UK) Limited
- Signed
- 13 Oct 2021
- Value
- —
- Status
- active
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1bids | — | — | US$1 – US$1 |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- The High CourtReview body
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- Merck Sharpe and Dohme (UK) LimitedAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications
Official links; attachments are not copiedNo document links were published on the notice.