Sanofi Pasteur has bought the stake of Merieux Alliance in the Indian vaccine-maker Shantha Biotechnics to boost global vaccine development.. The transaction, set to close before the end of the third quarter, values Shantha at €550 million or around Rs 3,740 crore. For the current fiscal year, Shantha sales are expected to be around $90 million.
According to an announcement from Paris today, Sanofi-Aventis and Mérieux Alliance reached a strategic agreement for the acquisition by Sanofi Pasteur of Mérieux Alliance’s French subsidiary ShanH, which owns 80 per cent stake in Shantha Biotechnics based in Hyderabad.
Mr Alain Mérieux, Chairman of Merieux Alliance, will chair the board of ShanH and a new joint committee will be created that will also be chaired by him on vaccine strategy for the emerging markets, a release said.
Under the terms of the agreement, Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of the Sanofi-Aventis Group, will support Shantha’s ongoing development to produce high-quality affordable vaccination in international markets.
Commenting on the agreement, Mr Christopher A. Viehbacher, Chief Executive Officer of Sanofi-Aventis, said: “Shantha provides Sanofi Pasteur with a portfolio of new vaccines in development which complement Sanofi Pasteur’s current vaccines, positioning the company to accelerate its growth in strategically important emerging markets.”
Mr Alain Mérieux said, “Shantha’s future vaccines development necessitates support from a major international vaccine company. This agreement gives me the opportunity to reconnect with Sanofi Pasteur, a company to which I am historically attached”.
Mr Varaprasad Reddy said: “It is the best thing that has happened and sends strong signals that Indian pharma companies are well respected.
“That the management philosophy has not been changed shows that the partnership would add more to the company’s efforts in future.”
Asked about his stake, Mr Reddy told Business Line that the company was keen on acquiring, but “I have told them that I would dilute only a small portion, which they are okay with. A meeting with the top brass is scheduled in the second half of August,” he added.
The two French majors share a common heritage with Institute Merieux. Institute Merieux, founded in 1897 by Marcel Merieux, a student of Louis Pasteur (a pioneer in vaccine development) in Lyon, France, was responsible for some path-breaking work in vaccines.
Source: The Hindu Businessline