Almirall-Prodesfarma Merger In Spain Finalized And Fully Operative

Six months after two well-established Spanish pharmaceutical companiesdecided to join forces to become the country's leading drugs multinational (Marketletter February 3), Almirall-Prodesfarma is now fully operational, the merger having been ratified on July 22. The company, which has appointed Jorge Gallardo as chief executive, says that the merger "is a matter of two large national research companies joining forces in order to reinforce the creation of new products and to achieve a maximum level of competitiveness."

It also makes clear its aim to increase its presence on the worldwide market, and continue to reinforce its dominant position in Spain, where the company is a clear market leader in the digestive, metabolic and skeletal-muscular therapeutic groups. Overall market share currently stands at 7%.

Domestic turnover for 1997 is expected to be over 53 billion pesetas ($336.3 million), with international revenues bringing sales close to 76 billion pesetas. 55% of the company's invoicing is generated by products developed from its own research, with a significant slice of this income coming from licensing agreements with companies such as Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, Merck KGaA and Pharmacia & Upjohn.