Riyadh – Mubasher: Saudi Chemical Company signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Russia's sovereign wealth fund, to provide and distribute the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine in the kingdom.

The second stage of the one-year MoU, subject to necessary approvals from relevant bodies, stipulates the transfer of the vaccine's manufacturing technologies to the kingdom, in addition to training and qualifying national capabilities, according to a bourse filing on Tuesday. 

The signing came through Saudi Chemical’s pharmaceutical sector represented in AJA Pharmaceutical Industries Co. (AJA Pharma) and Saudi International Trading Company (SITCO Pharma) with the RDIF, which had previously announced its partnership with R-Pharm company and Gamaleya research centre to produce the first Russian COVID-19 vaccine with a possibility to export it to other countries.

Moreover, the deal’s impact will reflect of Saudi Chemical's financials after the agreement completion.