(Ecofin Agency) – Following the announcement of the sale of Kimia Holding’s majority stake in the Moroccan pharmaceutical group Pharmaceutical Institute, the British Kelix Bio has made a takeover offer which is awaiting approval by the competent authorities.
Kelix Bio, an English pharmaceutical company specializing in generic products and present in India, Egypt and Malta has made an offer for the purchase of all the shares of Pharmaceutical Institute SA, a Moroccan pharmaceutical company.
The proposed amount was not disclosed. If the transaction is approved, it will allow Kelix Bio, supported by CDC Group and Development Partners International, to enter the Moroccan pharmaceutical market.
Ali Sedrati, CEO of Pharmaceutical Institute said the partnership will “to expand the reach of his company and continue his mission of providing pharmaceutical products”.
This takeover proposal comes nearly a month following the announcement of the sale made by Kimia Holding of its majority stake in the Moroccan pharmaceutical laboratory.
At the current stage, the takeover project has been notified to Morocco’s Competition Council which, along with other regulatory bodies, must examine the transaction before deciding. Kelix Bio, which has proposed to make an indirect acquisition of Pharmaceutical, targets a market with approximately $2 billion in annual pharmaceutical consumption.
According to the Moroccan Federation of Pharmaceutical Industry and Innovation, the industry constitutes 1.5% of the GDP, and achieves more than 15 billion dirhams (1.5 billion dollars) in turnover.
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