NEWS
New large peptide deal for Bachem
Bachem has signed a new framework agreement to provide large volumes of peptides to an unnamed customer following a joint development project . This covers “ a committed volume at an equivalent value of over € 500 million for the five-year period of 2027-2031 , with significant upside potential ,” the company said .
The agreement follows a previous large-volume contract for another unnamed customer worth € 178 million in 2023-4 . This was announced in September 2022 and subsequently upgraded with a further work order for a minimum total of € 1 billion from 2025 to 2029 .
In each of the projects , the peptides will be supplied out of Building K ( pictured ), the new large-scale production facility that is currently under construction at the main site in Bubendorf , Switzerland . This is due to open in 2024 and will more than double manufacturing capacity at the site .
Bachem is also intending to invest some € 750 million up to 2030 to build on a newly acquired 155,000 m 2 site at Sisslerfeld , north-western Switzerland . This will create 500 jobs . Up to 3,000 in total could be created from ongoing expansions , on top of the 1,200 Bachem already employs .
In a related development , Bachem has just raised about € 110 million in a capital increase through the placement of 1,250,000 new registered shares at € 88.10 / share on the SIX Swiss Exchange . This does not affect co-founder and chairman Peter Grogg ’ s majority ownership .
CEO Thomas Maier explicitly linked it to the need to invest in “ capacity increases , technological capabilities and long-term partnerships with key pharmaceutical and biotech companies ” to meet growing demand for peptide and oligonucleotide drugs .
Also reflecting the growing demand for peptides , in January CordenPharma signed a multi-year agreement for the contract manufacture of a large-volume launch peptide at its former Roche facility in Boulder , Colorado . This will begin in 2023 and will potentially be worth about $ 1 billion , depending on the actual production levels required .
As part of this , the company will further expand both large- and mediumscale peptide capacity at Colorado and in Frankfurt . It is also engaged in a pursuing a large investment programme to expand capacities and technologies in such areas as peptides , lipids and injectables , with an overall planned investment of over € 200 million this year .
IN BRIEF
Fluoro expansion Japan ’ s AGC is to spend about € 240 million to increase capacity for fluorochemical products at its Chiba site . This is being done in response to strongly growing demand in many fields , notably semiconductor-related applications . The expansion is scheduled to begin in Q2 2025 .
Surface-active deal Innospec has entered into a strategic , multi-year research collaboration with the Centre for Formulation Engineering at the University of Birmingham , which has wide expertise in colloids , surfaces and interfaces . This will focus on the development of surface-active chemicals that could be used in agrochemicals , construction , fuel and home and personal care products .
Caldic merger done The merger between speciality chemicals distribution firms Caldic and Connell has closed , creating a global player with sales of € 3 billion / year , 3,500 FTE employees and a presence in 43 countries . It will be mainly active in the food , ( bio ) pharma , personal care and industrial formulations markets . The new firm will be called Caldic , except in the Asia-Pacific region .
Glycine to be tested Czech-based specialty chemicals company Draslovka is to roll out a testing and implementation programme for GlyCat , its glycine-based gold-leaching product , in several mines run by Barrick Gold . This could ultimately lead to a global rollout . GlyCat is is non-toxic , food-grade and recyclable , which potentially offers savings in costs and impacts
11