1 week Ago By [email protected](KoreaTimes)
SK Bioscience CEO Ahn Jae-yong, left, poses with Klocke Group CEO Carsten Klocke on screen after signing an agreement on SK Bioscience's acquisition of IDT Biologika, a Klocke affiliate, June 26. Courtesy of SK Bioscience By Nam Hyun-woo SK Bioscience said Wednesday it has completed the acquisition of a controlling stake in IDT Biologika, a German company, one of the top 10 global vaccine contract development manufacturing organizations. According to the company, it finished the payment to acquire IDT Biologika four months after signing an agreement with Klocke Group, a German biopharmaceutical group, to acquire a 60 percent stake in IDT Biologika in June.
The deal is valued at 356.4 billion won ($270 million). As part of the deal, Klocke Group will retain a 40 percent stake in IDT Biologika, while investing 76 billion won in SK Bioscience, acquiring a 1.
9 percent stake in the Korean company. The two sides have agreed to establish a partnership through cross-shareholding, building on mutual trust in their business execution capabilities and growth potential. Following the acquisition, SK Bioscience said it will focus on its systematic integration with IDT Biologika to enhance management efficiency and drive business expansion.
The company plans to double IDT Biologika’s annual sales by 2028 and improve its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to account for 25 percent of its sales. As IDT Biologika’s earnings will be consolidated into SK Bioscience's, the company said it seeks to achieve 1 trillion won in consolidated sales within the next three years. IDT Biologika runs its contract development manufacturing business in Germany and the United States, serving big-name clients including Janssen.
Last year, its sales totaled 410 billion won, and its facilities in Germany received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for compliance with Current Good Manufacturing Practice standards.
SK Bioscience said it will maximize the operation rate of IDT Biologika’s manufacturing facilities. In particular, the company plans to increasingly utilize some of IDT Biologika's drug substance and drug product production lines for potential major projects with global pharmaceutical companies. After the acquisition, Sally Choe, head of the development headquarters at SK Bioscience, will lead IDT Biologika as co-CEO along with current CEO Ulrich Valley.
“With the successful completion of the IDT Biologika acquisition, we are rapidly stabilizing the management as SK Bioscience and IDT Biologika now unite as one family,” SK Bioscience CEO Ahn Jae-yong said. “The capabilities of the two companies are expected to generate significant synergy, and boost our ambition for global expansion.”.
