01 March 2012, London UK and Philadelphia, US
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) today announced that it has signed an agreement
with Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. to form a Joint Venture (JV) which is
expected to create the number one vaccines company in Japan.
The JV will hold the development and commercial rights for already
existing preventative vaccines from both parent companies. It will
supply globally recommended vaccines to help protect people of all ages
in Japan including Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, Rotavirus
vaccine, Seasonal flu vaccine, Mumps vaccine, Diphtheria Pertussis (DTP)
vaccine, and Measles Rubella (MR) vaccine. The business will be
expanded in the future as new vaccines in the JV development pipeline
are approved.
Both companies will sell their respective vaccines into the JV at agreed
upon prices and expect sales synergies from the JV. The companies will
have an equal stake in the joint venture and will split the JV’s
profits 50/50 with a portion going toward funding ongoing capital needs
of the JV. There will be a minimal total cash investment of 100 million
Yen (approximately
£800,000) split equally between the two companies to
cover the start up capital requirements of the JV.
Christophe Weber, President Designate of GlaxoSmithKline Vaccine
s,
commented, “This collaboration marks another step in our strategy to
build our presence in key growth markets and will create the first and
largest company dedicated solely to vaccines in Japan. We
are very pleased to be partnering with Daiichi Sankyo, a
highly regarded company and an established leader in Japan. Both
companies have strong track records in commercialisation and, in
combination, will create further significant economies of scale in the
development and distribution of vaccines in the Japanese market.”
Completion of the transaction is expected in the 3
rd quarter of 2012, subject to local regulatory approvals.
