Questcor Pharmaceuticals has signed a definitive agreement to acquire all issued and outstanding shares of BioVectra Inc., for an upfront payment of $50.6 million. BioVectra provides contract manufacturing services to the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, and manufactures APIs, chemical intermediates, and bioprocessing reagents.
 
BioVectra has been Questcor’s manufacturing partner for the API in Questcor’s H.P. Acthar Gel (repository corticotropin injection) for the past 10 years. BioVectra will continue to operate independently in Prince Edward Island, under its existing management team and Questcor will support the continued growth of BioVectra’s business.
 
BioVectra’s capabilities include synthetic organic chemistry, natural extraction of bioactive compounds from plant and animal-based biomass sources, PEGylation and conjugation chemistry, and fermentation of a variety of molecule types. BioVectra employs approximately 180 people including chemists, engineers and technicians, and had sales of approximately $28 million in its last fiscal year ended August 31, 2012, up 15% from 2011.
 
“We are excited to join efforts with BioVectra as we look to diversify our revenue,” said Don M. Bailey, president and chief executive officer of Questcor. “This action puts us in a better position to meet the continuing growth in demand for Acthar, brings to our company a broader depth of technical and scientific expertise, and provides us with a platform for potential international expansion.”
 
“We pride ourselves on being a strategic partner, forging long-term relationships with our clients and utilizing our proven technical skills to serve our clients’ business needs,” said Ron Keefe, chief executive officer of BioVectra. “Questcor has been an important long term partner and we look forward to further building our relationship.”