Altana has identified a limited number of potential partners for its Pharma division, but financial investors and generics companies are not on the list, according to group chief executive Dr Nikolaus Schweickart.
“We are looking for an international company which is research-driven, hence not focused on generics, off-patent drugs or medical technology,” Schweickart stated, adding that it did not matter where a potential partner was based.
Selling the division to a financial investor was not an option, Schweickart said, because pharmaceutical companies offered a better strategic fit. However, he did not exclude the possibility of selling the Pharma division – which includes the €115 million OTC business unit – to another company.
Noting that Altana’s Chemicals division could be spun-off for a stock market listing in the second half of this year, Schweickart insisted the Pharma business would have “more opportunities for development” with a strategic partner. “Companies of our size are faced with challenges that raise long-term strategic questions,” he acknowledged, pointing in particular to the scale of research and development needed to compete, as well as the cost of ever stricter regulatory standards.
Altana Pharma reported preliminary sales up by 12% to €2.4 billion in 2005. Group turnover including the Chemicals division increased by 10% to €3.27 billion.
Source: OTC Bulletin
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