Novartis completes buy of 85% stake in Chinese vaccine maker Tianyuan

Swiss drug major Novartis (NOVN: VX) said this morning that it has now completed the transaction to acquire an 85% stake in the Chinese vaccines company Zhejiang Tianyuan Bio-Pharmaceutical, which will retain its name. The $125 million deal was first announced nearly 17 months ago (The Pharma Letter November 4, 2009).

Since its founding in 1994, Tianyuan has become one of China’s leading private manufacturers and distributors of vaccines with approximately 400 associates and an R&D/manufacturing site in Hangzhou (near Shanghai). It is the country's second largest H1N1 influenza vaccine supplier. At the time of the original deal announcement, the Chinese firm had been delivering dynamic and profitable growth, having more than doubled its net sales to around $25 million in 2008 compared to 2006, Novartis revealed. More current turnover figures were not provided.

Sales of Novartis’ Vaccines and Diagnostics business grew to $2.9 billion in 2010, including $1.3 billion of A(H1N1) pandemic flu vaccines.