Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna to rake in $15bn from COVID-19 vaccines sales by 2023

Saleha Riaz
·3 min read
In 2023, the BionTech-Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine sales is forecast to generate $914m, almost 3.5 times less than in 2021. Photo: Getty Images
In 2023, sales of the BioNTech-Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is forecast to generate $914m, almost 3.5 times less than in 2021. Photo: Getty Images

Pfizer (PFE), BioNTech (BNTX) and Moderna (MRNA) are set to make the lion's share of 2021 COVID-19 vaccine sales, and will together rake in $14.7bn (£10.8bn) in revenue over the next three years.

New data has shown that 2021 in particular “is set to become quite a year for the pharma companies leading the COVID-19 vaccine race, with significant revenues on the line,” said research company Finaria.

The vaccine developed by Massachusetts-based biotech company Moderna is expected to generate over $3.5bn in revenue this year, $400m more than the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine.

This jab has been approved in the US, the UK, EU, Canada and Israel. Data shows its annual sales revenue is expected to remain around $2.9bn in the next two years.

Last month, the UK became the first western country to approve any COVID-19 vaccine when it authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech candidate. The US followed and the vaccine has also been granted emergency approval in Canada and conditional approval in the European Union.

The vaccine is set to generate over $3.1bn in sales during 2021. However, this figure is expected to drop to under $1.4bn in 2022 and continue falling in the next few years. In 2023, BionTech-Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine sales are forecast to generate $914m, almost 3.5 times less than in 2021.

Chart: Finaria
Chart: Finaria

The downside of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine is its need for ultra-cold storage. Many countries don't have the required logistics.

Meanwhile, the highest number of ordered doses is of the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca (AZN.L) and Oxford University.

READ MORE: Goldman Sachs: Vaccine rollout could spark bumper bounce back for UK

At the beginning of 2021, there were pre-purchase agreements for almost three billion doses for AstraZeneca/Oxford's vaccine.

One of its biggest advantages is the ability to be stored at average refrigerator temperatures.

Although still in phase 3 of clinical trials and without approval, Novavax's vaccine is the second-highest by the number of orders worldwide or almost 1.3 billion.

Finaria said the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine hit 816 million ordered doses as of last week. Gamaleya, Sanofi/GSK and Moderna followed, with 727 million, 712 million, and 441 million orders, respectively.

As of 10 January, a total of 25.8 million COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered worldwide, Finaria said.

Statistics show China accounted for almost one-third of that number, with 9 million vaccine doses. The US ranked second with more than 8 million dosed administrated as of the last week.

The UK, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates follow with 2 million, 1.8 million, and 1 million doses, respectively.

Earlier on Tuesday, economists at Goldman Sachs (GS) said the successful rollout of COVID-19 vaccines could drive a strong bounce back in UK and US GDP from the second quarter onwards.

The UK is vaccinating 140 people per minute against the coronavirus on average, vaccine deployment minister Nadhim Zahawi said on Monday.

Britain is currently leading Europe’s vaccination race, after becoming the first country to approve the Pfizer jab.

Around 2.2 million people received the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine between 8 December 2020 to 10 January 2021 in the UK, with mass vaccinations sites also opening on Monday.

Watch: Vaccine volunteers helping with rollout