Fresenius Kabi AG acquires Fenwal

LAKE ZURICH, Ill. & BAD HOMBURG,Germany—Fresenius Kabi AG, a provider of infusion therapy and clinicalnutrition, and Fenwal Inc., a company specializing in separation technologiesfor blood and cell collection and therapy, announced today a definitiveagreement under which Fresenius Kabi will acquire Fenwal.

The acquisition, which is subject to customaryconditions, is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Financial termswere not disclosed, but officials at Fresenius made the somewhat oddqualification that the enterprise value doesn't exceed the approximately $1.1billion taken in a May capital increase.

So, whether that means that Fresenius paid $1.1billion or something less is unclear, but it likely paid a pretty healthy sum,given that Fenwal had 2011 sales of $614 million and adjusted earnings beforeinterest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $90 million.

In any case, this could have some small positiveimpact for the drug discovery and development world—at least for those who workwith blood-transfusion-based therapies—given that Fenwal purports to have "becomea partner of choice for researchers and established biotech and pharmaceuticalcompanies" and has blood collection and separation that are not only applicablefor supporting and protecting the blood supply but also in the delivery ofblood-transfusion therapies. This expertise has become more critical, the twocompanies state, given the recent growth and potential of cell therapies forcancer, Alzheimer's disease and other conditions.

The parties say that the acquisition "bringstogether two leaders in health care with complementary products, strategies andgeographic presence," adding that by working together, they will bring theircustomers a wider array of products and services, while continuing to increasetheir pace of product development and geographic expansion.

"Fenwal has built a leadership position centeredon separation technology used to collect and process blood and to treatdisease," said Rainer Baule, chairman and CEO of Fresenius Kabi. "LikeFresenius Kabi, Fenwal has a unique and long history serving healthcare,productive relationships with customers and researchers and a rich pipeline ofnew products that are essential to patients and those who care for them."