In an unusual decision, French drugmaker Sanofi (SNY  ) announced on Wednesday that it has entered into an agreement with German biotech BioNTech (BNTX  ) to help manufacture and supply its coronavirus vaccine co-developed with Pfizer (PFE  ). This decision comes as Sanofi's own coronavirus vaccine candidate faces delays.

Under the agreement, Sanofi will produce over 125 million dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in Europe, with initial supplies coming from the drugmaker's Frankfurt, Germany facility starting in the summer. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

"We are very conscious that the earlier vaccine doses are available, the more lives can potentially be saved. [This agreement] is a pivotal step towards our industry's collective goal of putting all the effort in to curb this pandemic," said Paul Hudson, chief executive officer at Sanofi, in a statement.

"Although vaccination campaigns have started around the world, the ability to get shots into arms is being limited by lower than expected supplies and delayed approval timelines owing to production shortages," Hudson continued. "We have made the decision to support BioNTech and Pfizer in manufacturing their COVID-19 vaccine in order to help address global needs, given that we have the technology and facilities to do so."

Sanofi's decision comes as Pfizer-BioNTech and British drugmaker AstraZeneca (AZN  ) have experienced production difficulties amid unprecedented global demand.

This week, the European Union and AstraZeneca have disputed over whether or not the drugmaker is honoring its delivery commitments to the 27-nation bloc. AstraZeneca stated that they cannot meet their targets due delays in the expansion of the drugmaker's production capacity, according to the Associated Press.

Sanofi has faced setbacks in the development of its own coronavirus vaccine candidate. Last month, the drugmaker and partner British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK  ) announced that they would be delaying the launch of their candidate until late 2021 to address the shot's poor immune responses in older participants in mid-stage clinical trials.

The two plan to initiate a new Phase 2 study of the vaccine candidate next month. Depending on positive early-stage results, the pair will begin a global Phase 3 study in the second quarter of 2021, with results expected by the second half of the year for regulatory review.

Sanofi is also developing another coronavirus vaccine candidate with the U.S. biotech Translate Bio (TBIO  ) which uses mRNA technology, similar to the vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna (MRNA  ). Early-stage clinical trials of this vaccine are expect to begin this quarter.