Consort Medical plc has entered an agreement to acquire Aesica Pharmaceuticals Ltd. for £230 million. The transaction, subject to conditional shareholder approval and clearance by the German authorities, is expected to close in November.
 
Consort Medical is focused on developing and manufacturing disposable medical devices for drug delivery including inhaled, nasal and injectables products through its core operating division Bespak. Aesica provides contract development and manufacturing services for finished dose and APIs to the global pharmaceutical industry. Both companies are based in the UK.
 
Jon Glenn, Consort Medical’s chief executive officer said, “We are excited by the acquisition of Aesica which represents a very strong fit with our existing strategy of diversifying into adjacent markets and technologies to capture additional value in the drug/device supply chain. As one of Europe’s leading pharmaceutical CDMOs, Aesica is highly complementary to Bespak’s existing business and provides a number of clear strategic, competitive and value-enhancing benefits for the Enlarged Group.”
 
Dr. Robert Hardy, founding chief executive officer of Aesica, added, “We are proud of what we have accomplished with Silverfleet Capital’s support in developing Aesica through a combination of organic growth, continuous process improvement and investment in capacity.  We continue to see many exciting opportunities in the pharmaceutical contract manufacturing sector and we look forward to pursuing these under the ownership of Consort Medical plc.”