Novartis Acquires Chinese Vaccine Company

Novartis has completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Zhejiang Tianyuan Bio-Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. — one of the largest privately held vaccines companies in China. The acquisition gives Novartis an expanded presence in the Chinese vaccines market and will facilitate the introduction of Novartis vaccines into the country.

"This agreement combines the strength of our vaccines R&D strategy and pipeline with Tianyuan's deep knowledge of the vaccines market in China," Andrin Oswald, Head of Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics, said in a statement.

According to the statement, Novartis will collaborate with Tianyuan to strengthen its vaccines portfolio and pipeline, as well as align production processes and quality standards. Novartis also added that it plans to explore new vaccine developments to address unmet medical needs in China.

Ding Xiaohang, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Tianyuan, also added: "We have already identified several joint development programs that could be implemented in China over the next ten years, with the potential of launching key products responding to unmet medical needs in the mid-term."

In related news, Novartis has also reportedly announced that it will axe more than 500 positions in the UK at its Horsham site in West Sussex. The full story is available via BBC news.

www.novartis.com