Millennium to acquire Cambridge Discovery Chemistry for L35 million

Millennium Pharmaceuticals has entered into an agreement to acquire theUK's Cambridge Discovery Chemistry, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oxford Molecular Group. The US biotechnology firm claimed that the deal will provide it with "the critical mass in medicinal and computational chemistry necessary to expand the company's global capability."

Under the terms of the agreement, which is expected to close later this month, Millennium will pay L35 million ($52.9 million) in cash and the US firm says it expects to finance the purchase through a simultaneous private placement of its securities.

The acquisition will mean the addition of 85 chemists to Millennium's discovery research team, bringing its total chemistry capability to 150 staff. Once the deal is completed, CDC will continue to base its operations in Cambridge, UK, thereby establishing a presence for Millennium in what it claims is "one of the strongest and most innovative pharmaceutical and technology centers in Europe."