Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS) announced today that the U.S. government plans to award the company a sole source contract of the purchase of 44.75 million doses of BioThrax, the only vaccine licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to protect against anthrax infection.The purchases will come over a 5-year period, for inclusion in the United States' "Strategic National Stockpile (SNS)."Fuad El-Hibri, chairman and chief executive officer of Emergent BioSolutions said, "Emergent is pleased to be in active discussions with the U.S. government for a multi-year supply of BioThrax to the SNS. We remain dedicated to serve as a reliable and long-standing supplier of medical countermeasures that support the U.S. government’s continued commitment to anthrax preparedness."To date, Emergent has sold the U.S. government over 42 million doses of BioThrax, and provides additional doses under active procurement contracts. Since 1998, 10 million doses have been administered to more than 2.5 million military personnel.Emergent anticipates the finalization of the contract during the third quarter of 2011.