Sanitas buys third-largest Slovak pharma co

The maximum annual production capacity for the newly acquired factory is 38.5 million injection ampoules, 500 million tablets and 122 tonnes of ointment, according to the LETA news agency.

Hoechst-Biotika is one of four major producers of pharmaceuticals in the Slovak Republic, ranked third in the market behind Slovakofarma and Biotika and ahead of state-owned Imuna. Sanitas' decision to buy Hoechst-Biotika comes something of a surprise, as Biotika had been tipped to gain control of the joint venture.

Sanofi-Aventis - and Aventis before it - has been angling to offload Hoechst Biotika for some time, manly because its production accounted for just a fraction of one per cent of its revenues.

Indeed, interest from western companies in Slovakia has been limited at best; until very recently Aventis was the only multinational with a presence in the country, and that predated the division of Czechoslovakia. The accession of the Slovak Republic to the Europan Union could change that, but it is interesting that a company from another EU accession company has stepped up th the plate.

The value of the transaction is estimated to amount to €12.7 million.