31st Oct 2008 07:00
Vectura receives €7.5 million milestone from Boehringer Ingelheim
Chippenham, UK - 31 October 2008: Vectura Group plc ("Vectura"; LSE: VEC) today announces that a €7.5 million (£6 million) milestone payment will be received from the leading pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH ("Boehringer Ingelheim"), under the worldwide collaboration, development and licence agreement with Vectura.
Under the terms of the non-exclusive agreement, signed in April 2006, Vectura has worked with Boehringer Ingelheim on the development of a fully-integrated, multi-dose dry powder inhaler (DPI). Boehringer Ingelheim is entitled to develop and market its proprietary respiratory medicines in a branded version of the inhaler for the treatment of respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Milestones and equity payments received from Boehringer Ingelheim since April 2006 now total €37.5 million (£30.2 million). Additional milestones will be payable to Vectura for each product developed in the inhaler and Vectura will also receive royalties on global sales of Boehringer Ingelheim products delivered using the inhaler.
Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the world's leading companies developing therapies to treat asthma and COPD, for which the majority of treatments are delivered by inhalation, with Spiriva® being the company's strongest brand. Global markets are today valued in excess of $23 billion and are forecast to grow to over $46 billion by 2017. Dry powder inhalers are increasingly the first choice for patients with these diseases and it is expected that DPIs will be used to deliver the majority of the drugs sold in these markets by 2011.
Dr Chris Blackwell, Chief Executive of Vectura, commented:
"Boehringer Ingelheim has demonstrated a strong commitment to respiratory medicine resulting in the successful development of products such as Spiriva®. In such a high value and competitive market, the technology used to deliver respiratory medicines is key and must enhance the performance of the product. The benefits of a multi-unit dose blister inhaler over single-unit dose inhalers and reservoir inhalers is becoming increasingly apparent to companies intent on optimising the value of their products.
In the large and rapidly-growing respiratory market, Vectura will continue to develop its own products and seek credible and committed partners to realise value from their products using Vectura's technology."
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Enquiries:
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Vectura Group plc
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+44 (0)1249 667 600
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Dr Chris Blackwell
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Anne Hyland
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Julia Wilson
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Financial Dynamics
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+44 (0)20 7831 3113
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David Yates
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Ben Atwell
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Notes for Editors:
About Vectura
Vectura Group plc is a product development company focused on the development of a range of inhaled therapies principally for the treatment of respiratory diseases. Vectura develops products to treat respiratory diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and cystic fibrosis, a market which is forecast to double over the next ten years from $23 billion in 2007 to $46 billion by 2017. Vectura also develops products for non-respiratory diseases where optimised delivery via the lungs could provide significant benefits, such as a rapid onset of action, improved efficacy and improved tolerability compared with current therapies.
Vectura has eight products marketed by its partners and a portfolio of drugs in clinical and pre-clinical development, some of which have been licensed to major pharmaceutical companies. The Company seeks to develop certain programmes further through development to optimise value through licensing at a later stage. Vectura also offers its formulation and inhalation technologies to other pharmaceutical companies on a licensing basis where this complements Vectura's business strategy.
Vectura has development collaborations with several pharmaceutical companies including Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis and Sandoz. The acquisition of Innovata in January 2007 brought established alliances with a number of additional companies, such as Baxter, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Merck Generics (part of Mylan Inc), UCB and Otsuka, as well as providing revenue streams, complementary products and critical mass. For further information, please visit Vectura's website at www.vectura.com
Vectura Forward Looking Statement
This press release contains "forward-looking statements," including statements about the discovery, development and commercialisation of products. Various risks may cause Vectura's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including adverse results in clinical development programs; failure to obtain patent protection for discoveries; commercial limitations imposed by patents owned or controlled by third parties; dependence upon strategic alliance partners to develop and commercialise products and services; difficulties or delays in obtaining regulatory approvals to market products and services resulting from development efforts; the requirement for substantial funding to conduct research and development and to expand commercialisation activities; and product initiatives by competitors. As a result of these factors, prospective investors are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statement. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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