Israel’s pharmaceutical giant Teva buys Allergan’s generics unit in largest-ever Israeli acquisition
Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals, the world’s biggest maker of generics, has announced its acquisition of the generics unit of Allergan for $40.5 billion, (36.4 billion euro), in cash and stock, the largest ever acquisition by an Israeli company, the European Jewish Press reports.
Allergan is the world’s third-biggest maker of generic drugs.
Under the agreement, Teva will receive the Ireland-based Allergan’s Actavis global generics business, including commercial units, manufacturing operations, and R&D units related to generics. It will also get the international over-the-counter (OTC) commercial unit, not including eye care products.
Actavis has been present in Bulgaria since 2000. With two manufacturing sites in the towns of Dupnitsa and Troyan, Actavis is the highest selling pharmaceutical company in Bulgaria.
Actavis EAD is responsible for sales and marketing activities in Bulgaria.
About 40 per cent of production from the plants goes to the Bulgarian market. The rest is destined for foreign markets, including Russia and CIS countries, Ukraine and Belarus. In recent years, products from the Bulgarian factories have been entering the markets of EU countries such as Slovakia, Poland, the Baltic States and Romania, among others.
The transaction, which was unanimously approved by the boards of both companies, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016, and will further grow Teva’s generic pharmaceuticals empire, the EJP said.
“This transaction delivers on Teva’s strategic objectives in both generics and specialty,” said Teva President and CEO Erez Vigodman.
“Through our acquisition of Allergan Generics, we will establish a strong foundation for long-term, sustainable growth, anchored by leading generics capabilities and a world-class late-stage pipeline that will accelerate our ability to build an exceptional portfolio of products – both in generics and specialty as well as the intersection of the two,” he said.
Teva said in a statement that the acquisition would provide patients with more access to affordable medicines.
Teva estimates that the deal will put it in the top 10 of global pharmaceutical companies. The Israeli company’s leadership has been saying for months that it believes some of the biggest generic drug companies should combine in order to save money and become more efficient.
(Photo: Raysonho)
