Cadila Healthcare acquires Etna Biotech

Ahmedabad: Pharmaceutical major Cadila Healthcare Ltd (Zydus Cadila) on Tuesday announced the acquisition of Etna Biotech, a wholly owned Italian subsidiary of the Dutch bio-pharma company, Crucell N.V., for an undisclosed consideration.

The deal, which marks Zydus Cadila’s first acquisition in the research space, offers the group a research platform for developing new vaccines and technology, the company spokesperson said here.

The company’s stock price closed on Tuesday at Rs 261.15 on the BSE, 4.71 per cent down from the previous close of Rs274.05.

Crucell, which focused on biologicals, entered the vaccine space with the acquisition of Berna Biotech, a globally-renowned vaccine company. Etna was the dedicated research and development wing of Berna Biotech.

Etna Biotech, headquartered in Catania, Italy, focuses on research and development of vaccines. Currently, Etna Biotech has several innovative technologies and vaccines at different development stages in its pipeline. Prominent among those are the programmes for developing vaccines against Hepatitis using the virosome vaccine technology platform, and another against malaria and HPV using the measles technology platform. The need for specialised technology and cutting edge research has resulted in relatively limited competition and has posed high entry barriers for players in the field of vaccines.

With the global vaccine industry forecast to grow by nearly 18 per cent by 2010, which is roughly three times the growth of the global pharmaceutical industry, research and development of vaccines has emerged as a major focus area in recent times, the company said.

Mr Pankaj R. Patel, Chairman and Managing Director, said with the acquisition the company will be at the forefront of innovation for vaccine research and development. Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila, with a turnover of Rs 2,325 crore in 2007-08 and 9,500 employees worldwide, has global operations in four continents spread across the US, Europe, Asia, South America and Africa, including countries such as Japan, Brazil, South Africa and 25 other emerging markets.

Crucell N.V. is a global biotechnology company focused on research, development, production and marketing of vaccines, proteins and antibodies that prevent and treat primarily infectious diseases. Its important partners and licensees include DSM Biologics, Sanofi-Aventis, Novartis, Wyeth and Merck & Co.

Crucell is headquartered in Leiden, the Netherlands, with subsidiaries in Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Sweden, Korea and the US. The company employs over 1,000 people.