Only a day after announcing it was changing its name to Curia, the US CDMO known up to now as AMRI announced a “definitive agreement” to acquire Integrity Bio, a privately held biologics formulation and fill & finish organization headquartered in Camarillo, California.
EU competition authorities have approved AstraZeneca’s $39 billion takeover of US biopharma Alexion. Europe’s green light for the deal sealed in December 2020 follows the approval of the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in April 2021.
US semiconductor equipment maker MKS Instruments is buying German specialty chemicals and equipment company Atotech for an enterprise value of $6.5 billion in a combined cash-and-stock deal. The acquisition is expected to close by the fourth quarter of 2021. MKS will fund the cash portion of the transaction with funds to hand and debt financing.
Companies outside the drugs and private equity sectors are increasingly striking deals to buy pharmaceutical companies. In one of the latest, cigarette manufacturer Phillip Morris has bought oral drug delivery specialist Fertin Pharma. Seller is private equity investor EQT Private Equity.
Celanese has emerged as the buyer of the TPV elastomers business Exxon Mobil put on the sale block earlier this year. The US chemicals and engineering plastics group said on Jun. 30 it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire the portfolio that includes the iconic Santoprene brand along with intellectual property, production and commercial assets.
Catalent has announced plans to acquire RheinCell Therapeutics, a German developer and manufacturer of GMP-grade human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), a type of cell that can be differentiated into various cell types to address a wide range of therapeutic indications.
Global food giant Kerry Group has entered into an agreement to acquire Niacet Corp. from an affiliate of funds advised by private equity firm SK Capital Partners and other shareholders, for €853 million.
Distrupol, a UK-based distributor of thermoplastics and elastomers, has acquired Lautrup Chemicals, a Danish polymers distributor. Financial terms were not disclosed.
UK-based pharmatech Exscientia has entered into a binding agreement to buy Vienna-based Allcyte, a specialist in precision medicine using artificial intelligence (AI). Under the terms, Exscientia will pay €50 million, comprised of cash and Exscientia’s ordinary shares. The transaction is currently under review by Austrian regulators.
Just weeks after spending $60 million buying UK electro-chemical producer H.K. Wentworth, Element Solutions has offered to acquire Coventya, a French international manufacturer of specialty chemicals used in surface treatment, from private equity owner Silverfleet Capital.
Bayer has announced plans to acquire Noria Therapeutics and PSMA Therapeutics, thereby obtaining exclusive rights to a differentiated alpha radionuclide investigational compound based on actinium-225 and a small molecule directed towards prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA).
In the drive to reach growth objectives, or to maintain and enhance “critical mass”, mergers & acquisitions (M&A) has been a theme for the chemical distribution industry for years. The industry leaders (by size and geographic reach) were all built through a series of such transactions. The practice is further trickling down to the smaller and mid-sized company layer of the sector, and more distributors espouse external growth options.
As it sheds more commodity-oriented products in its plastics portfolio, French specialty chemicals producer Arkema has announced plans to acquire Agiplast, an Italian compounder regarded as a leader in the regeneration of high performance polymers, in particular specialty polyamides and fluoropolymers. The deal is expected to close next month.
AstraZeneca’s agreement to acquire Alexion Pharma for $39 billion, sealed in December 2020 and approved by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in April 2021, may not be a done deal after all. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced on May 25 that it has launched an anti-competition investigation into the transaction.
French specialty chemicals producer Arkema said it plans to acquire Edge Adhesives Texas, as “a complementary asset” that will boost subsidiary Bostik’s offerings in high performance adhesives in the US. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Analysis of the mergers & acquisitions activity in chemical distribution under the impression of the pandemic situation and how it might develop going forward.
In a nutshell, reaching sustainability has become a key aspect for chemical companies and adjacent businesses along the product chain with a high entry hurdle for everyone.
US specialty chemicals company Element Solutions has paid about $60 million in cash to buy H.K Wentworth (HKW), a UK-based producer of electro-chemicals for the electronics, LED, automotive and industrial manufacturing industries.
US specialty materials company Eastman Chemical has acquired 3F Feed & Food, a Spanish company specializing in the development of additives for animal feed and human food. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. The newly acquired business will become part of Eastman’s Additives & Functional Products segment.
US pharma giant Pfizer has acquired privately owned Amplyx Pharmaceuticals for an undisclosed sum. With the purchase of the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based at San Diego, California, the New York drugmaker will expand its anti-infectives pipeline with addition of novel antifungal Phase 2 candidate, Fosmanogepix (APX001).
Russian companies Sibur and TAIF are merging their petrochemical businesses in a move they said will create one of the world’s top five producers of polyolefins and rubber products. The merger, which remains subject to regulatory approval and the completion of relevant corporate procedures, could be finalized by the end of this year.
Australian companies Orocobre and Galaxy Resources have agreed to a “merger of equals” that they said would create the world’s fifth-largest manufacturer of lithium chemicals. The deal, valued at A$4 billion, has been unanimously approved by the boards of both companies and is expected to complete by August 2021.
UK specialty chemicals company Elementis has been the subject of another attempted takeover – its fourth in under six months – but this time from US rival, Innospec.
US industrial gases specialist Air Products has bought the remaining 50% equity stake in a gasification technology joint venture it picked up in the 2019 acquisition of GE’s gasification business and technology. Financial terms of the arrangement with China Shenhua Coal to Liquid and Chemical Co., part of China Energy Group, were not disclosed.
Virtual specialty materials manufacturer Aceto has acquired A&C, a producer of specialty excipients, buffers and process solutions, for an undisclosed sum.
US private equity group One Rock Capital Partners has completed its acquisition of UK plastics distributor Distrupol from US chemicals distributor Univar – the plans were announced in late January. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
Novozymes has acquired Biota’s microbiome R&D team and data science platform for an undisclosed sum. The move builds on two previous deals in the microbiome field this past year, notably of US-based Microbiome Labs and Ireland’s PrecisionBiotics.
Amgen is to buy Five Prime Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech focused on developing immuno-oncology and targeted cancer therapies, for about $1.9 billion. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the second quarter, when a wholly owned subsidiary of Amgen will merge with Five Prime.
US plastics additives and colorants manufacturer Milliken has acquired Zebra-chem, a globally-focused chemical producer based at Bad Bentheim, Germany. The German company specializes in chemical blowing agents as well as peroxide masterbatches that enable plastics producers to incorporate up to 100% recycled content into new plastics.
Dutch distributor Barentz has acquired a majority stake in the Noack Group, extending its activities in the Central/East European region and gaining a complementary portfolio of animal nutrition ingredients.
PQ Group has agreed to sell its Performance Chemicals business for $1.1 billion to a partnership established by Cerberus Capital Management and Koch Minerals & Trading. The divestment is part of PQ’s strategy, called Simpler + Stronger, which the group said is aimed at driving greater value for its shareholders.
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.
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.
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.
Germany’s Lanxess has signed a binding agreement to acquire 100% of Emerald Kalama Chemical from affiliates of private equity firm American Securities. The US specialty chemicals producer focused mainly on consumer markets last reported sales of $425 million and EBITDA pre-exceptionals of $90 million. Closing is expected in the second half of 2021, subject to regulatory approval.
