I'll buy a bankrupt pharmaceutical company. Bargaining is appropriate
Sergey Pugachev bought an American pharmaceutical company
Remedium based on the materials of the newspaper "Kommersant"
Controlled by the senator from Tuva and the owner of the United Industrial Corporation (MIC) Sergey Pugachev, OPK Biotech LLC acquired the American pharmaceutical company Biopure Corporation.
The asset, which is in bankruptcy proceedings, cost the Russian businessman only $ 4.05 million. The defense industry structure will pay another $0.85 million for a 50% stake in Biopure in the company, which owns the headquarters of the pharmaceutical holding and scientific laboratories. The market of blood products manufactured by Biopure in Russia and Eastern Europe is not yet developed, but has great potential, analysts say.
The fact that OPK Biotech LLC became the owner of the American Biopure Corporation is stated in the message of the pharmaceutical company. On August 18, Biopure summed up the results of the auction within the framework of the bankruptcy proceedings for the sale of its assets: the transaction amount amounted to $4.05 million (the price includes rights and patents for drugs manufactured by Biopure), while for the first half of 2009 the net loss of the company amounted to $4.1 million.
According to the report, the bankruptcy court (the court of the Eastern District of Massachusetts, a copy of the case is at the disposal of Kommersant) has already approved the transaction. In addition, the defense industry structure for $0.85 million will acquire 50% of Biopure's shares in the company, which owns the headquarters of the pharmaceutical holding and "some laboratory facilities" (approval of this transaction by the court is scheduled for early September).
Defense Industry spokesman Dmitry Morochenko declined to comment. According to the information on the website of the law firm Graig and Macauley (accompanied the transaction), the office of OPK Biotech LLC is located in Moscow on Bolshaya Dmitrovka Street, the contact person is David Henderson–Stewart; the defense industry is registered at the same address, and Mr. Henderson-Stewart himself is on the board of directors of Mezhprombank, owned by the corporation. Biopure did not respond to a request from Kommersant yesterday.
The defense industry was formed in 2004. The main assets are concentrated in the financial business (Mezhprombank, retail Bank M+, National Bank of the Republic of Tyva), the raw materials sector, development (projects in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi), retail (boutique chain Hediard), infrastructure construction, machinery and shipbuilding (88% of the shares of the Baltic Plant and 72.23% shares of the Severnaya Verf plant), media business (Moskovia TV channel). Under the management of the defense industry in 2008, according to its own estimates, there were assets worth about $ 13.5 billion.
Biopure Corporation specializes in the development and production of drugs that improve oxygen access to body tissues, the main brands are Hemopure and Oxyglobin (hemoglobin for human and veterinary use, respectively). Revenue for the first half of fiscal year 2009 (ended April 30) – $1.5 million.
According to an investment banker familiar with the strategy of selecting assets for the defense industry or personally for Mr. Pugachev, "he (Sergey Pugachev.– Kommersant) often acquires assets for the future, without an obvious economic justification." For example, the interlocutor of Kommersant cites the businessman's acquisition of 85% of the French tabloid France Soir earlier this year: the publication's losses for 2006-2007 alone are estimated at €6 million (see Kommersant of January 17). Then market participants noted that "the deal may be related to the desire to strengthen relations between Russia and France."
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru26.08.2009