Nijmegen, the Netherlands, 3 September 2014 – Mercachem announced today that it has agreed to acquire Synthon’s Prague-based laboratory and pilot scale operations for the manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) under cGMP. The acquisition will allow Mercachem to expand on its current activities and provide its customers with a broader portfolio of services.
Synthon’s divestment decision is based in its strategic initiative to concentrate all its R&D and manufacturing activities that currently take place in the Czech Republic in one location. All activities and projects relating to Synthon’s own proprietary product portfolio carried out in Prague will be transferred to Synthon’s fully integrated API R&D and production site in Blansko, also in the Czech Republic. As a result of the acquisition, all Synthon Prague employees will join Mercachem per the contractually agreed date of 1 October 2014.
Mercachem is very excited to start carrying out scale-up and cGMP synthesis of drug substances in Prague for the purpose of clinical trials. In addition the company will perform contract manufacturing of small volume commercial products and conduct all related research activities.
Frank Leemhuis, managing director of Mercachem comments: “This acquisition, in combination with our existing activities in drug discovery, gives us the opportunity to offer a complete range of chemistry services from compound design to clinical proof of concept and beyond, all located within the European Union. We are extremely happy with this opportunity to acquire these operations with an experienced team with a proven track record as well as state-of-the-art facilities with clean inspection history.”
Financial details on the acquisition will not be disclosed.
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About Mercachem: Mercachem is a privately owned leading European contract research organization offering innovative chemistry, medicinal chemistry and early process research services to accelerate the drug discovery and development process in a flexible and cost-effective way. Mercachem was founded in 1997, occupies 4,000 m2 state-of-the-art research facilities in Nijmegen and employs approximately 135 chemists. Working for many pharmaceutical and biotech companies throughout the world, Mercachem is recognized for its high-quality products and services and its unprecedented problem solving capabilities. More information on Mercachem can be found on the company website www.mercachem.com
About Synthon: Synthon, with headquarters in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, is an international pharmaceutical company and a leader in the field of generic medicines. The company started its biopharmaceutical franchise in 2007 and is building a promising portfolio of next generation medicines. Synthon is developing rapidly into a specialty pharmaceutical company, focusing on the therapeutic areas of auto-immune/neurodegenerative diseases and oncology. Synthon products are currently approved by regulatory agencies in over 80 countries worldwide and marketed through strategic partnerships and – in dedicated areas – through direct sales. Synthon employs about 1,400 staff worldwide, and in 2013 it recorded a turnover of EUR 215 million. For more information: www.synthon.com
Not for publication
For more information, please contact:
Mercachem BV
Dr. Frank Leemhuis
Managing Director
Kerkenbos 1013
6546 BB Nijmegen
The Netherlands
phone: +31-24-3723300 email: frank.leemhuis@mercachem.com www.mercachem.com
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