Divestments see Recipharm zoning in on core CDMO offerings

Swedish contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) Recipharm agreed this week to divest seven manufacturing and development facilities.

Under terms of the deal (financials not divulged, US-based private equity firm Blue Wolf Capital Partners will acquire facilities in Solna, Stängnäs, Höganäs, Karlskoga and Uppsala (all in Sweden), Pessac in France, and Parets in Spain, dedicated to the manufacturing and development of oral solid, semi-solid, and liquid dosage form pharmaceutical products.

The sale came on the same day Recipharm completed its spin-out of Bespak, a standalone organization focused on drug-device combination products and drug delivery devices. The business incorporates assets acquired from Consort Medical in 2020 including three facilities focused on inhaled and nasal drug delivery products in King’s Lynn, Holmes Chapel (both UK), and North Carolina, US.

Both deals demonstrate a solid shift in strategy for Recipharm, which has traditionally been at the forefront of the small molecule and transactional CDMO service space.

Greg Behar, who took the reins at Recipharm in January this year, described the sale to Blue Wolf as a “strategic move” that bolsters his firm’s “commitment to being a reliable provider of development and manufacturing services.” He added, in a press release, that while the deal will focus the firm’s oral solid dosage (OSD) activity on New Chemical Entities (NCEs), medium to high potency and on-patent drugs, it also “gives a sharp focus” to other higher-end CDMO services, including sterile fill/finish and biologics, through the ReciBioPharm business.

“ReciBioPharm continues to build our differentiated presence in nucleic acids and viruses, with the ambition to strengthen our leading position in nucleic acids, in microbiome and in viruses,” said Behar.

The biologics business came from acquisitions in 2022 of GenIbet, adding biologics drug substance capabilities, and Vibalogics, which added cell and gene therapy (CGT) services. This was further bolstered by the buy and subsequent buildout of Arranta Bio, which added live biotherapeutic products (LBPs) and RNA technologies.

“ReciBioPharm continues to build our differentiated presence in nucleic acids and viruses, with the ambition to strengthen our leading position in nucleic acids, in microbiome and in viruses,” said Behar.

Describing Bespak, he reinforced the new direction, saying the spin-out “reinforces Recipharm's dedication to driving growth and fostering innovation within our core segments: OSD, SFF [sterile fill/finish] and biologics.”

No further information was offered up by Recipharm when contacted by this publication.