British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca Plc (LON:AZN) and Nipro Corp (TYO:8086), a Japanese manufacturer of syringes and medical devices, have signed an agreement to supply AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine in Japan, Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday.

Nipro said the contract, which was for filling the shot into vials and packaging it, is due to start next month.

Reportedly, Japan's government has agreed to acquire 120 million doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine, enough for 60 million people.

Japan's AstraZeneca doses will initially derive from undiluted solution imported from the US. The supply will gradually shift to Japanese producers, with about 90 million doses to be made by JCR Pharmaceuticals Co and other local partners.

An AstraZeneca spokeswoman stated that this deal with Nipro adds a third company to existing deals with Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co and KM Biologics Co to prepare and bottle doses.

According to Reuters, there are no immediate plans to use AstraZeneca's shot in Japan, amid lingering concerns raised internationally over blood clots.

The spokeswoman said it was up to Japan's government how the doses would be used.