Abbott buys Russian firm Veropharm
pharmafile | December 15, 2014 | News story | Manufacturing and Production, Sales and Marketing | Abbott, Fresenius, cfr pharma, petrovax, sistema, veropharm, zenitco
Abbott has completed its purchase of Russia-based Veropharm in a $305 million deal as it looks to firmly establish itself in the country’s growing market.
Generics manufacturer Veropharm has a portfolio of medicines that Abbot says is ‘well aligned’ with its focus areas of women’s health, central nervous system, cardiovascular and gastroenterology. It will also provide Abbot with a new oncology offering and R&D capabilities for Russia.
“Abbott has had a presence in Russia for nearly 40 years and, in line with its long-term commitment to growing global healthcare markets and capabilities, the company is committed to providing a reliable supply of its healthcare products to Russian patients,” it adds in its statement.
Another boon of the deal is the ability for Abbot to manufacture drugs in the country, as Russian president Vladimir Putin has warned that firms who want to sell products there may be penalised if they are not produced locally. Veropharm already has three production facilities, with a new one currently under construction.
Abbott previously tried to buy out its Russian vaccine partner Petrovax to gain a stronger foothold in the region, but the country’s antitrust regulator considered keeping local control of vaccine production to be a security concern and blocked the deal.
Veropharm has had strong growth over the last few years and the Russian market as a whole is one of the fastest-growing in the industry. The purchase continues Abbot’s trend of expanding its generics business into emerging markets like China, India and Latin America.
For example earlier this year it acquired Chilean firm CFR Pharmaceuticals. Abbott says it expects the Veropharm purchase to add approximately $150 million in sales in 2015.
The US firm has seemingly not been scared off by the ongoing political tensions between Russia and NATO, which led to German company Fresenius terminating its joint venture with Sistema JSFC and Zenitco Finance Management in the region last month.
George Underwood
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