The Advent-Ozone transaction, estimated at €20 mln

“We have an agreement in principle and we are working on details, but the details are not simple. Nothing is sealed. We agreed on certain aspects, but there is still a long way until finalization,” LaborMed Pharma’s Development Manager, Adrian Stroilescu, told Business Standard.

When contacted by Business Standard, LaborMed’s Chief Executive Officer Stephen Stead, has neither confirmed nor denied the finalization of the deal, but said that a press release on the subject will be issued in the near future.

Similarly, Ozone’s General Manager Ruxandra Năstase, said she could provide no details about the transaction. The deal includes taking over the authorizations of Ozone Laboratories for selling products on the Romanian market, while A&D Pharma pharmaceutical distributor and retailer integrates the operations the company has in neighboring markets - Bulgaria, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic - through the sales&marketing division. Ozone’s main shareholders are among the founders of A&D Pharma.

According to sources close to the deal, LaborMed will not take over Ozone’s sales team, nor the sales&marketing contract for promoting and selling the products of the U.S. Bristol Myers Squibb company in Poland, Bulgaria, and Slovakia. This contract, owned by Ozone since 2006, will be taken over by A&D Pharma’s sales&marketing division.

Talks for Ozone’s sale were initiated as early as last year, according to information on the market, but were affected by the global economic crisis. The price of the company plunged, from €80-100 mln initially to some €10-20 mln.