US – US-based pharmaceutical company, Catalent has signed an agreement to acquire Metrics Contract Services from Mayne Pharma Group for US$475 million.
The acquisition will bolster Catalent’s capabilities in integrated oral solid formulation development, manufacturing and packaging to help customers simplify and accelerate their program.
The deal will additionally aid Catalent in expanding its capacity to manage highly potent compounds.
“This acquisition will further expand Catalent’s ability to meet our customers’ expectations in fast-growing areas of the business and patient need,” said Aris Gennadios, Group President of Catalent’s pharma and Consumer Health Segment.
“The experienced team and consistently improved, state-of-the-art facility in Greenville will provide Catalent’s customers with immediate, fit-for-scale capacity for in-demand highly potent drugs and other oral solid small-to-mid-size batch needs.
“This capacity is particularly important for customers with R&D pipelines featuring accelerated, orphan, and rare disease programs for oncology and other important therapeutic areas.”
Metrics has a 333,000ft² facility in Greenville, North Carolina, US. The plant features capabilities to accelerate and de-risk customer programs from early development through commercial launch through a streamlined one-site solution.
Over the past five years, the facility has seen more than US$100 million in capital improvements and currently comprises 16 production suites, of which 11 are equipped to manage highly potent compounds.
It also has two packaging lines that can accommodate a wide range of development and commercial supply programs.
In addition, the plant has a manufacturing capacity of more than one billion oral solid dose units annually.
Upon completion of the takeover, the Greenville facility of Metrics will be integrated into the oral development and manufacturing network of Catalent.
The network comprises sites for the production of large-scale and controlled release oral solids in Winchester, Kentucky, development and manufacturing of softgel in St Petersburg, Florida, as well as other facilities with bioavailability enhancement technologies and platforms for oral solids production.
In addition, Catalent and Mayne Pharma agreed on a long-term supply agreement under which the Greenville facility will progress to produce various products of the latter.
The acquisition is expected to close before the end of this calendar year, subject to customary closing conditions, and the entire team of over 400 employees will join Catalent.
Catalent will pay the purchase price for this all-cash acquisition using a combination of cash on hand, existing credit facilities, and, depending on market conditions, potentially new debt financing. The closing of the acquisition is not contingent on any financing activity.
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