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A clinic in South Korea has put up a sign that says Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine is for people aged between 55 and 59. (Yonhap News)

After a previous supply hiccup, the pharmaceutical company Moderna is set to provide South Korea with 7.01 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine over the next two weeks.

The Central Disaster Management Headquarters (CDMH) said Sunday that Moderna had “announced plans [Saturday] to supply 7.01 million doses to South Korea by the first week of September [last week of August].”

“First, 1.01 million doses will be arriving at Incheon International Airport tomorrow [Monday], after which the other 6 million doses will be arriving in sequence,” it said.

On Aug. 6, Moderna informed South Korea that it would be providing fewer than half of the 8.5 million doses it had initially planned to supply in August, citing laboratory issues at a manufacturing site.

In response, a South Korean delegation led by Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Kang Do-tae visited Moderna’s headquarters in the US on Aug. 13 to discuss plans for stabilizing supplies with officials in charge of international sales for the company.

In their discussions at the time, the South Korean government asked Moderna to expand the number of doses and move the supply schedule up to early September. According to the CDMH, Moderna responded by apologizing for the supply hiccup, informing the delegation that it would be announcing a new supply schedule to South Korea by Saturday or Sunday.

“If Moderna supplies the 7.01 million doses over the next two weeks, then that means it will have supplied a total of 8.31 million doses between Aug. 1 and the first week of September, including the 1.3 million that arrived on Aug. 7,” the CDMH said.

“This is a substantially higher volume than the ‘fewer than half’ announced on Aug. 6,” it said.

In practical terms, however, the amount includes 1.96 million doses that had been scheduled for delivery in July but ended up being postponed.

Supplies for September have not been finalized as discussions continue with Moderna. But the South Korean government said it would be able to meet its target of administering first doses to 36 million South Koreans by the Chuseok holiday in the fourth week of September.

Kang Do-tae said, “Uncertainties about the Moderna vaccine supplies were already factored into the original vaccination plan to allow us to achieve administration of first doses to 36 million people by Chuseok.”

He added that by increasing the previously reduced number of doses, Moderna “has enabled us to achieve that target in a more stable way.”

Amid ongoing uncertainties surrounding vaccine supplies, the CDHM announced Sunday that it was in discussions with Romania toward a possible swap of vaccines and medical equipment. South Korea previously received vaccines donated by the US and reached a vaccine swap agreement with Israel.

Foreign news outlets reported earlier that Romania was planning to donate Moderna vaccine doses to South Korea as their expiration date approaches, but this proved to be false.

The CDHM said that it was in discussions on a swap involving exchanges of vaccines and medical equipment, adding that there was still time left with the Moderna vaccine doses in question set to expire in November or later.

By Choi Ha-yan, staff reporter

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