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Alkermes plc have announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its development and manufacturing facility in Athlone, Ireland to Novo Nordisk, a leading global healthcare company. Under the terms of the agreement, upon the closing of the transaction, Alkermes will be entitled to a one-time cash payment of $92.5 million for the facility and related assets, subject to customary adjustments in accordance with the agreement. The transaction is expected to close in mid-2024, subject to certain closing conditions.
"As we prepare to enter 2024 as a pure-play neuroscience company, we have continued our focus on aligning our infrastructure and cost structure with the projected needs of the business. Upon closing, we expect this transaction to drive operational efficiencies and enhance profitability over the long term," said Richard Pops, Chief Executive Officer of Alkermes. "I am particularly pleased to enter this agreement with Novo Nordisk as it offers our employees at this world-class, state-of-the-art GMP manufacturing facility in Athlone an exciting opportunity for growth."
"The acquisition of the Athlone facility represents an expansion of Novo Nordisk's global manufacturing setup and will provide Novo Nordisk with additional development and manufacturing capacity for current and future oral products," said Thilde G. Hummel Bøgebjerg, Senior Vice President, Product Supply Emerging Technologies, Novo Nordisk. "With this acquisition, we are excited to soon welcome approximately 400 highly skilled colleagues currently employed by Alkermes with valuable capabilities within oral drug development and manufacturing who will play a key role in serving even more patients with oral products."
Alkermes and Novo Nordisk also plan to enter into subcontracting arrangements to continue certain work currently performed at the facility for a period of time after closing of the transaction, which may continue through the end of 2025. This transaction is expected to be operating cost-neutral to Alkermes over the subcontracting period and thereafter, the transaction is expected to yield significant operating cost benefit and contribute to enhanced profitability. Alkermes will continue to retain all royalty revenues associated with products currently manufactured at the facility.