Bayer, CureVac to 'join forces' on Covid-19 vaccine candidate

German pharmaceutical firms Bayer and CureVac said Thursday that they have joined forces in the development of CureVac's Covid-19 vaccine candidate.

Under the deal, CureVac will be able to tap Bayer's expertise and established infrastructure, according to a joint statement.

The agreement "will help us make our vaccine candidate even more rapidly available to as many people as possible," CureVac chief executive Franz-Werner Haas said.

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Also, Germany's Bayer will provide access to international pharmaceutical markets as well as its global supply chain and distribution network, the tabloid newspaper reported in an excerpt made available to Reuters ahead of publication.

CureVac last month started a large Phase 2b/3 clinical trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, banking on the same technology that has allowed rivals BioNTech and Moderna to lead the development race.