Skip to main content

Merck expands in Asia and proposes to acquire Australia’s Viralytics

7th March 2018

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Leading science and technology company Merck (known as MilliporeSigma in the US) has announced agreements in China, India and South Korea that will see the company invest €40 million in the region.

The company has signed an agreement with Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) to build an integrated cell culture facility in Songdo, Incheon. Located on 10,141m2 of land, the new centre will include cell culture media facilities and a logistics infrastructure. Construction is expected to begin in May 2018 and to be completed by mid-2019.

In India, Merck will invest €16.6 million in a new manufacturing and distribution centre for the Life Science business. The new centre, located in the Patalganga industrial area, near Mumbai, is expected to be completed in 2019. Occupying 10 acres (4 ha), the site spans more than 12,000m2. The facility will house a solids down-filling operation, giving the Life Science business a competitive advantage through improved fill rates and increased capacity.

China: biotech powerhouse

In China, Merck has announced an additional investment to accelerate Mobius single-use manufacturing in Wuxi, China. The investment follows a year after Merck announced its €80 million Life Science investment in Nantong, China in November 2016. China is fast becoming a biotech powerhouse with a promising bio similar industry. Single-use capacity is critical for biosimilar development and manufacturing because of their flexibility and efficiency. The site expansion is expected to be completed in the second half of 2018.

Viralytics proposal

Additionally, Merck has made proposals to purchase Viralytics, an Australian company focused on oncolytic immunotherapy treatments for a range of cancers. The proposed acquisition values the total issued shares in Viralytics at approximately A$502 million (US$394 million). 

On completion of the transaction, Viralytics will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Merck. Merck will gain full rights to Cavatak, Viralytic’s investigational oncolytic immunotherapy, which is currently being evaluated in multiple phase one and two clinical trials. 

UPL to split out specialities

Indian agrochemicals giant UPL has announced plans to transfer its speciality chemicals business, including agrochemical

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

AI for SAPs

Together with Algo Artis, Japan’s Nippon Shokubai has developed an algorithm-based means for the production

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Nippon Shokubai's API Facility in Japan

Nucleic acid API boost

Nippon Shokubai is to expand its GMP capacity for nucleic APIs tenfold It will install

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Flamma's facility in Dalian

Flamma opens in China

Italian CDMO Flamma Group has officially opened its new cGMP plant at Dalian, China, where

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

GL Chemtec has opened a new kilo lab

GL Chemtec completes kilo lab

CDMO GL Chemtec has announced the completion of a cGMP kilo lab at Oakville, Ontario

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Sterling's facility at Deeside, UK

CDMOs in ADC investments

Five CDMOs across the world have separately announced investments in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Piramal Pharma is

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Afyren Neoxy plant

Milestones for two greentech firms

Afyren has achieved continuous production at its Afyren Neoxy plant at Clermont-Ferrand (pictured)

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Origin by Ocean derives its materials from sargassum

CABB in algae biorefinery deal

CABB has agreed a strategic partnership to establish a first-in-kind algae biorefinery at its site at Kokkola

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

First waste-based biosurfactants

Belgian start-up AmphiStar has launched what it claims are the first fully upcycled biobased surfactants

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Aether to supply Seqens

Indian firm Aether Industries has entered into a manufacturing agreement with Chemoxy International, a UK-based

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

New model for biocatalysts

BASF, the Austrian Research Centre of Industrial Biotechnology (ACIB) and the University of Graz in

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

CBE JU funds 31 more projects

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU), a €2 billion partnership between the EU

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Ribbon cutting ceremony at Lubrizol's new office

Lubrizol opens London office

Lubrizol has opened a new office in Hammersmith, London. This will be home to a

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Sudarshan to buy Heubach

India’s Sudarshan Chemical Industries (SCIL) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Heubach

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Alliance in natural fragrances

Sensegen, a US-based specialist in biotech-enabled fragrances, notably a new class of natural musk raw

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Croda breaks ground in China

Croda International has broken ground for a low-carbon, multi-purpose production facility on a greenfield site

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

CCT collaboration for Givaudan

Flavours and fragrances giant Givaudan has agreed a research collaboration for the development of sustainable

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

REACH Authorisation

Candidate List ‘reaches’ 250

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has added three more substances to the Candidate List of

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington

Staff at Brenntag's newly acquired Czech site

CO2-free distribution site first

Brenntag has officially inaugurated what it claims to be the first CO2-emission-free chemical distribution site

Submitted by:

Andrew Warmington