
WuXi AppTec Sells China Clinical Research Business to Sharpen Focus
WuXi AppTec has agreed to sell its China-based clinical research services business, including WuXi Clinical and WuXi MedKey, to Hillhouse Investment Management.

WuXi AppTec has agreed to sell its China-based clinical research services business, including WuXi Clinical and WuXi MedKey, to Hillhouse Investment Management.

China-headquartered contract research, development and manufacturing organization (CRDMO) WuXi Biologics plans to increase the manufacturing capacity of its US facility in Worcester, Massachusetts to 36,000 l, 12,000 l more than the originally planned 24,000 l.

Chinese contract research, development, and manufacturing organization (CRDMO) Wuxi Biologics announced the planned spin-off and separate listing of its subsidiary WuXi XDC on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Upon completion of the proposed listing, Wuxi XDC will remain a consolidated subsidiary.

Chinese CDMO WuXi Biologics plans to expand capacity in Germany in response to rising demand. The company will install a second filling line at Leverkusen and expects to double capacity from 12,000 liters to 24,000 liters at its drug substance facility in Wuppertal.

WuXi STA has added two reactors at its Changzhou campus in China, enhancing capacity and capability at its TIDES contract research, development and manufacturing platform for oligonucleotide, peptide and related synthetic conjugates. The reactors have capacity of 2,000 liters each, taking total volume for solid-phase peptide synthesizers to more than 10,000 liters.

In this interview, Jinling Chen, head of WuXi STA’s drug product business, and Jamie Andrews, site head of WuXi STA’s Couvet facility, explain the company’s strategy and the goals of the European expansion.

WuXi STA has opened a sterile lipid nanoparticle (LNP) formulation development and manufacturing facility at its campus in Wuxi city, China, in response to rising demand for complex injection dosage forms.

Germany’s Merck has signed has an agreement with the Administrative Management Committee of Wuxi National High-Tech Industrial Development Zone to “significantly expand” the company’s first Asia-Pacific Mobius Single-Use manufacturing center in China.

China’s WuXI Biologics has agreed to buy Pfizer’s biologics manufacturing facilities in Hangzhou for an undisclosed price. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2021. The Shanghai-based company said the acquisition will immediately boost its capacities for commercial drug substance (DS) and drug product (DP) capacities to address surging manufacturing demand.

China contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) WuXi STA has agreed to buy Bristol Myers Squibb’s manufacturing facility in Couvet, Switzerland, for an undisclosed sum. The site will be WuXi STA’s first facility in Europe. The transaction is expected to complete during the second quarter, subject to the usual conditions and regulatory approvals.

Through a subsidiary, Shanghai, China-based WuXi Biologics (WuXi Bio) is acquiring Bayer’s biologics substance plant at Wuppertal, Germany, for €150 million ($183.3 million).The transaction, expected to close in the first half of 2021, follows earlier Wuxi Bio purchases of plants the pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals group is shedding in Germany and the US.

