Last checked at 
(Adds changes to estimates, details on Pfizer)
By Ludwig Burger
FRANKFURT, Aug 9 (Reuters) - BioNTech and partner
Pfizer have supplied more than one billion doses of
their COVID-19 vaccine as per July 21, a bigger number than
delivered by competitor AstraZeneca, the German biotech
group said on Monday.
The supply tally, up from more than 700 million doses
announced by the biotech firm in June, compares with AstraZeneca
saying late last month that it and manufacturing partner Serum
Institute of India had supplied a billion doses to 170 countries
at the time.
Based on delivery contracts for over 2.2 billion doses so
far, BioNTech said in a statement it expects to accrue 15.9
billion euros ($18.7 billion) in revenue from the vaccine this
year, up from a May forecast of 12.4 billion euros.
That includes sales, milestone payments from partners and a
share of gross profit in its partners' territories, the company
added.
Pfizer late last month raised its forecast for its share of
2021 vaccine sales to $33.5 billion.
BioNTech added on Monday that it and Pfizer believe a third
dose, following the established two-shot regimen, "has the
potential to preserve the highest levels of protective efficacy
against all currently tested variants, including Delta",
underscoring similar remarks made by its partner.
Still, it reiterated plans to start testing a vaccine
adjusted to the highly infectious Delta variant of the virus on
humans this month, part of a "comprehensive strategy to address
variants, should the need arise in the future".
($1 = 0.8509 euros)
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger
Editing by Caroline Copley, Douglas Busvine and Chizu Nomiyama)
