Print Edition
August 2010 
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Solvay To Choose Between Two Buyers |
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Muazzin Mehrban, July 2009 |
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(15 July 2009)
Belgian chemical and drugs company Solvay has said that it has a shortlist of two bidders for its pharmaceuticals business. These are the privately-held Swiss company Nycomed, and US pharmaceutical giant Abbot Laboratories.
Earlier this year Solvay had said it was considering various strategies, including discussions with third parties about a potential sale.
Solvay’s board met at the start of the week to evaluate the bids, both of which cover different areas of the business. Notably, Abbot is only bidding for TriCor, the blockbuster cholesterol fighting drug, which is already licensed for sale in the US.
But regardless of the buyer, any sale needs to be approved by Solvay’s largest shareholder, Solvac, which currently holds a 30 percent stake.
Nonetheless, people close to the company have insisted Solvay is not a forced seller and could yet hold on to its pharma unit, enter it into a partnership, or place it on the stock market.
The sale would be part of the continued consolidation of the drugs sector, which is facing a drop in sales of $100bn over the next five years.
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