ICON and PRA Health Sciences in $12 Billion Merger
Irish CDMO ICON is to acquire US-based rival PRA Health Sciences in a cash-and-stock deal worth approximately $12 billion. Both boards of directors have unanimously approved the merger.
News
US Merck to Make Covid Vaccine for J&J
Another “Big Pharma” company with a stalled candidate of its own is stepping in to help boost national or regional Covid-19 vaccine supply. US president Joe Biden was due to announce on Mar. 2 that Merck & Co will help make the Johnson & Johnson single-shot vaccine that received an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Feb. 27.
Salins Buys Nouryon’s Salt Specialties Arm
In a deal due to close in the second half of this year, privately owned French salt producer Salins is buying Nouryon’s Salt Specialties business, including brands such as JOZO, NEZO, Suprasel, Sanal and KNZ, for an undisclosed sum. The Dutch company’s salt and chlor-alkali business belong to its Nobian arm.
Ineos Phenol and Engie Test Hydrogen in Cogen Plant
Ineos Phenol and utility group Engie are planning a pilot project in Doel, Belgium, that will use hydrogen in a commercial-scale cogeneration plant, replacing the natural gas feed for generating electricity and heat. Initially, 10% of the gas feed will be replaced with hydrogen and, if all goes well, this will be increased to 20%. Engie is responsible for the design, installation and operation of the technology.
Charles River Buys Cognate BioServices
Charles River Laboratories has agreed to buy Cognate BioServices, a cell and gene therapy CDMO, for about $875 million. The purchase is expected to close by the end of March, subject to customary conditions and regulatory clearance.
CEFIC Urges Strong EU Industrial Policy
Following a decline of 2% in 2020, European chemical production is forecast to pick up by 3% in 2021, before growth rates taper off slightly in 2022, but output in that year should still land 2% higher against 2021.
FDA Grants EUA for J&J’s Covid Vaccine
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on 27 February granted an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Janssen Biotech, part of US healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson’s pharmaceuticals arm. The “totality of the available data available data,” it said, provides “clear evidence” that the vaccine may be effective in preventing infection from the virus.
Shell to Produce “Green” Aviation Fuel in Germany
Shell has announced plans to produce sustainable aviation fuels together with UK-based ITM Power at its Rhineland refinery in Cologne-Wesseling, Germany. A new Bio-Power-to-Liquid plant would be the first such commercial plant ever, it said.
Arkema Hikes China Fluoropolymer Capacity
Arkema is planning to invest in more fluoropolymer capacity in China in order to meet strong demand into lithium-ion batteries, as well as the water filtration, construction coatings and semiconductor industries.
Sirion and Sanofi in Gene Therapy Partnership
Germany’s Sirion Biotech has signed a license and collaboration agreement with major French pharma Sanofi on viral vector-based gene therapy. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The partners aim to develop improved tissue-selective adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors to realize effective gene therapy treatments for disorders affecting major human organs.
Moderna Expects 2021 Covid Vaccine Sales of $18 Billion
For mRNA vaccine maker Moderna, March is gearing up to roar in like a lion, with the tailwind setting the pace for the year ahead. Reporting 2020 financial results on Feb. 25, the US biotech that before last year had not sold a single product said it expects to take in more than $18 billion in revenue from sales of Covid-19 vaccines during 2021.
Catalent to Acquire Delphi Genetics
Leading US gene therapy CDMO Catalent is buying all shares of another CDMO in the same field, plasmid DNA (pDNA) specialist’s Delphi Genetics, headquartered at Gosselie, Belgium. Concurrently, the New Jersey-based company is launching pDNA development and manufacturing services at its Rockville, Maryland, facility.
Borealis invests €17.6 million in Emissions Control
Vienna, Austria-based polyolefins and fertilizer producer Borealis plans to invest €17.6 million in a new Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO) for its polyolefins plants in Porvoo, Finland, as part of an effort to significantly lower the site’s CO2 emission.
Tecnicas Reunidas Wins Turkish PTA Contract
Spanish engineering contractor Tecnicas Reunidas has signed a contract with Turkey’s Sasa Polyester to build a PTA plant. Located at Adana, Turkey, the plant will have a capacity of 1.5 million t/y. The value of the contract was not disclosed, although the total cost of the project is estimated by Sasa at $935 million.
Braskem Expands Green Ethylene Output
Brazilian petchems and plastic group Braskem is spending $61 million to expand its production capacity for green ethylene, the sugarcane ethanol-derived main feedstock for renewable polyethylene, at its plant in Triunfo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. With the expansion, expected to be completed in Q4 2022, capacity will rise from 200,000 t/y currently to 260,000 t/y.
Hempel Buys Wattyl from Sherwin-Williams
Danish coatings manufacturer Hempel has agreed to buy Wattyl, an Australian and New Zealand producer of architectural and protective paints and coatings, from owner Sherwin-Williams. Financial terms of the transaction, which is expected to close by the end of March, were not disclosed.
Sanofi to Produce J&J Covid Vaccine in France
On the same day that Sanofi and GSK announced the start of a new Phase 2 study of their delayed adjuvanted recombinant protein-based Covid-19 vaccine candidate, Sanofi disclosed it had signed an agreement to manufacture 12 million doses of Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose adenovirus-based Covid vaccine.
IFF may Divest Business after DuPont Nutrition Buy
After completing the purchase of DuPont’s nutrition and biosciences unit, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) is looking to divest at least two of its expanded businesses, the Bloomberg news agency said, citing “people with knowledge of the matter.”
Steady in the Long Term Despite the Crisis
For the report "Value Creation in Chemicals 2020: Bouncing Back from a Year of Adversity", Boston Consulting Group (BCG) analyzed the development of the global chemicals market in the Covid-19 crisis in 2020 and in the years 2015 to 2019 using key figures. The result shows: The current crisis is forcing companies to increase their resilience. The entire value chain, exposure to the end industry, and technical, commercial and digital capabilities must be put to the test in order to respond more effectively to changes in the markets in the future.
Yara Plans Green Ammonia Project in Norway
Yara International has signed a Letter of Intent with Statkraft – Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy – and investment group Aker Horizons to establish a large-scale green ammonia plant in Norway. The partners plan to electrify and decarbonize Yara’s existing ammonia plant in Porsgrunn, targeting green hydrogen and green ammonia opportunities within shipping, agriculture and industrial applications.
Ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge to Merge
The Belgian cities of Antwerp and Bruges have agreed to merge their respective ports, with the former taking an 80.2% share in the combined port and Bruges taking 19.8%. The merger remains subject to a number of conditions, including approval from Belgian competition authorities.
Comirnaty Low-Temperature Storage Constraints Eased
For several days, the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine Comirnaty (BNT162b2) has dominated international headlines. From the market’s perspective, the most significant news is that the partners, as hinted earlier, have been able to reformulate the doses to facilitate storage at a higher temperature.
Biden Releases Funding for Vaccine Alliance
New US president Joe Biden has pledged to release altogether $4 billion in US funding to support Gavi, the global vaccine alliance. The president was expected to announce an initial $2 billion in funding at the virtual G-7 summit of the world’s largest economies on Feb. 19.
OMV Invests in Green Hydrogen Plant
OMV and Kommunalkredit Austria – a bank specializing in infrastructure and energy financing – are investing in the construction of Austria’s largest electrolysis plant to produce green hydrogen. Total investment will be about €25 million, which will be split equally between both partners.
Sandoz to Aquire GSK’s Cephalosporin Antibiotics
Sandoz, the generics division of Swiss drugmaker Novartis, is picking up GlaxoSmithKline’s cephalosporin antibiotics business, including the brands Zinnat, Zinacef and Fortum, for up to $500 million.
The IIoT Needs You and Me
The IIoT continues to evolve, with countless solutions touting end-to-end process automation. However, one of the most important elements of IIoT — the human element — has taken a back burner in this hype cycle.
Regis Technologies Completes Lab Expansion
US-based CDMO Regis Technologies has completed a major expansion of its laboratory facilities for development of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) at its site in Morton Grove, Illinois. The project, kicked off two years ago, doubles the company’s capacity to take on new development projects.
AbbVie and Caribou in CAR-T Collaboration
US biopharma AbbVie and compatriot biotech Caribou Biosciences have entered into a multi-year collaboration and license agreement to research and develop chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapeutics.
Repsol Licenses Technologies to China
Spanish energy and petrochemical group Repsol has signed a licensing agreement for its propylene oxide/styrene monomer (PO/SM) and polyols technologies for three plants in China.
PolyPeptide Group Appoints Raymond De Vré as new CEO
PolyPeptide Group has appointed Raymond De Vré as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He will succeed Jane Salik who, after 15 years in this position, will concentrate on her role on the Board of Directors.
Chemours Splits Fluoroproducts Division
US chemical company Chemours announced on Feb. 11 that it had split its Fluoroproducts segment into two distinct businesses during the fourth quarter of 2020.
WHO Grants EUA for AstraZeneca Vaccine
The World Health Organization (WHO) has granted emergency use authorization (EUA) to the AstraZeneca/ Oxford University coronavirus vaccine, in an attempt to distribute doses to more Third World countries. The vaccine will be produced by the Serum Institute of India and AstraZeneca-SKBio of South Korea.
J&J Applies to EMA for Covid Vaccine Approval
As had been awaited, US healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson has applied to the European Medicines Authority (EMA) for conditional marketing authorization of its Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine throughout the EU.
Elkem Buys French Silicones Plant
Elkem, a Norwegian manufacturer of silicon-based advanced materials, has agreed to buy a brand-new production plant near Lyon in France. The identity of the seller was not disclosed but Elkem said the purchase price is in the low double-digit millions of euros.
Rentschler Invests in UK Cell and Gene Therapy Site
German CDMO Rentschler Biopharma is to establish manufacturing capacity for advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), including Adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors for clinical trials, at the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT) site in Stevenage, UK.
