AstraZeneca will deliver 180 million Covid-19 vaccines to Europe in the second quarter, of which 20 million to Italy, the head of its Italian unit was quoted as saying, dismissing reports of a possible shortfall.

Lorenzo Wittum, the CEO and chairman of Astrazeneca in Italy, told daily Il Corriere della Sera in an interview that Italy would receive more than 5 million shots by the end of March, fewer than the 8 million previously agreed, leading to a total of 25 million doses by June.

Wittum also said the pharmaceutical company was considering the possibility of administering a third dose and was working on new versions of the vaccine.