Contract establishes two anti-infective operations and one nutrition firm.
Royal DSM inked contracts with North China Pharmaceutical Group (NCPC) totaling $110 million to invest in a 10% stake of NCPC and create two anti-infective joint ventures and one nutrition venture. DSM will hold a 51% majority in the two anti-infective ventures while holding a 30% share in the nutrition production venture.
“This serves key strategic targets: strengthening our DSM nutritional products as well as our DSM anti-infectives portfolio and expanding our presence in the emerging Chinese market,” says Jan Zuidam, deputy chairman of DSM. “The overall strategic partnership with NCPC provides an accelerated growth path into the Chinese market and will contribute to our target of $1.5 billion sales in China in 2010.” DSM’s 2008 revenue in China was about $1.1 billion.
The therapeutic venture will focus on active pharmaceuticals and intermediates, and the nutrition entity will deal with vitamin C. Both are expected to be implemented in the second half. The joint operations will combine DSM’s technology and management resources with NCPC’s factories, producing Vitamin C and beta lactam antibiotics, as well as a sales force for antibiotics.