India’s Intas Pharmaceuticals Ltd on Wednesday said it had agreed to buy Actavis United Kingdom Ltd and Actavis Ireland Ltd from Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals Limited for an estimated sum of £600 million (approximately Rs 5,083 crore), Mint reported. The Ahmedabad-based company said it expects the transaction to be completed within the next three months.
The acquisition, which represents the biggest Indian investment in Britain after the Brexit vote, will see Intas expand its manufacturing base in the UK. It will also double the pharmaceutical company’s pan-European operations and increase its access to retail and hospital markets in the UK and Ireland. Intas vice chairman and managing director Binish Chudgar said the firm is “paying a premium for a clean asset with a strong management team”, according to The Times of India.
“With this deal, we will be becoming the number one or two in UK and Ireland,” Chudgar further said, adding that the company’s existing businesses in Europe will benefit from the deal. Intas’ annual revenue is estimated at over $1 billion (approximately Rs 6,658.74 crore), with an estimated 60% coming from its international operations. The sale by Teva comes as the Israeli company seeks to address antitrust concerns following its acquisition of Actavis from the United States-based Allergan in August this year.
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