OSLO (Reuters) -Norway now expects to receive 900,000 fewer Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine doses in the July-September quarter compared to what authorities had earlier anticipated, Health Minister Bent Hoeie said on Monday.
The country of 5.4 million people will at the same time get a higher number of vaccine doses from Moderna but will still see a delay in its vaccination campaign, Hoeie told a news conference.
While Norway forecasts future deliveries based on input from vaccine makers, the volume it ultimately receives is subject to uncertainty and is only confirmed close to the time of delivery, according to the Institute of Public Health (FHI).
Pfizer said in an email it was meeting all contractual obligations.
As a result of the fewer doses, it will take about one week longer for Norwegian adults to get their first dose compared to the current vaccination plan, and about two weeks longer for vaccination with the second dose, Hoeie said.
Norway has so far vaccinated 45.7% of its adult population with one dose of the two-dose vaccines, while 31.5% are fully vaccinated, FHI data shows.
(Reporting by Victoria Klesty, editing by Terje Solsvik)
