TUNIS, Tunisia, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A major technology alliance between Tunisia and Canada was announced today during a ceremony attended by representatives of the Tunisia Ministry of Public Health, Mr. Jacques Saada, Canadian Minister responsible for the Francophonie, and many distinguished guests. BioMena S.A., the result of this alliance, is a private company whose mission is to manufacture affordable biopharmaceutical products for the treatment of diseases such as anemia, cancer, hepatitis and multiple sclerosis. This new company was created through the close collaboration between various Tunisian governmental agencies and financial partners, all sharing a common goal to provide Tunisia with a strategic industrial platform in the biopharmaceutical industry, while providing the country and the vast Africa and Middle East region with the technological, financial and industrial means to face new challenges in the healthcare sector.
This project, initiated in 2003, represents an investment of approximately 60 million TND (approximately US$ 48 million) by North African and European banks, including the European Investment Bank, as well as by private investors from Tunisia and surrounding regions.
As an exclusive licensee of ProMetic's advanced technology, BioMena will be in a position to manufacture drugs that meet the highest quality standards and to commercialize them at very competitive prices in its domestic market, in MENA countries and in certain regions of Eastern Europe. The state of the art plant will be built in the Sidi Thabet Technopark, located a few minutes north of Tunis, and will employ 50 to 100 specialized workers who will be trained in Canada and Tunisia over the next two years. BioMena will also benefit from the technological and commercial support of local and Canadian partners such as the Biotechnology Research Institute of the Canada National Research Council.
During the ceremony, the appointment of Mr. Ferid Ben Osman as Managing Director of BioMena was also announced. Until recently, Mr. Ben Osman was Managing Director of Aventis Pharma Tunisia, a subsidiary of Sanofi Aventis, the global pharmaceutical group. He is currently Chairman of the Chambre Nationale de l'Industrie Pharmaceutique (CNIP) and his collaboration with Roussel - now Hoescht Marion Roussel following the merger with Hoescht of Germany - and Aventis after its merger with Rhone Poulenc in 2000, testify to his early contribution to the emergence of the private health sector in Tunisia. As his career evolved through these mergers, he was called upon to manage a leading pharmaceutical group with an impressive portfolio of products. In addition, Mr. Ben Osman is a member (Steering Committee) of the Canada-Tunisia Chamber of Commerce. His experience in the industry represents a key asset for the future development of BioMena.
Mr. Majhoub Ameur, President of BioMena, said: "This marks the birth of a high technology and innovative project that will bring recognition to our country in this industry. BioMena is a large scale North-South and triangular project, designed to serve developing countries. Considering the strategic importance of this sector in developed economies, reinforcing its foundation here within our territory will allow us to consolidate the progress made and, in the coming years, continue building the required infrastructure to reach national and regional objectives for the health sector."
Mr. Pierre Laurin, President and Chief Executive of ProMetic, is proud of the work accomplished by his team and everyone involved in this project: "BioMena is a future-oriented project with social, technological and economic dimensions. Over the next few years, more patients suffering from debilitating diseases will be treated with the latest drugs at much more affordable prices. We are proud to share our expertise, our know-how and our innovative technology in order to support BioMena's continued growth."
The company's sales are estimated to reach 200 million TND in a few years, which represents a substantial economic contribution to this region. Partners of this major scale project are confident that BioMena will grow to become a leading player in the Tunisian biotechnology industry. One of the medium term objectives is to set up a research and development infrastructure in the facility in order to provide BioMena with the capabilities to develop and export new products from local research.
About BioMena
BioMena is a newly-formed Tunisian company that specializes in the manufacture of high-quality standard biopharmaceuticals for export at competitive prices to MENA countries (Middle East and North Africa) and certain regions of Eastern Europe: exports will account for more than 80% of sales. Its state-of-the-art facility, to be built in the Sidhi Thabet Technopark (north of Tunis), will manufacture affordable drugs for the treatment of anemia, cancer, hepatitis and multiple sclerosis.
About ProMetic Life Sciences
ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. (TSX-PLI.SV) is a biopharmaceutical company specialized in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of a variety of commercial applications derived from its proprietary Enabling Technology. Mimetic Ligand(TM) technology is used in large-scale purification of biologics and the elimination of pathogens/viruses. ProMetic is also active in Therapeutic Drug Development with the mission to bring to market effective, innovative, lower cost, less toxic products for the treatment of inflammation and cancer. The Company's Mimetic Ligand(TM) technology is also leveraged into its drug discovery platform aiming at replacing complex, expensive proteins with synthetic "drug-like" protein mimetics. Headquartered in Montreal (Canada), ProMetic has R&D and manufacturing facilities in the UK and business development activities in the US, Europe, Asia and MENA countries (Middle East and North Africa).
Additional information is available on the Company's website: http://www.prometic.com/ .
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to the Company's ability to develop, manufacture, and successfully commercialize value-added pharmaceutical products and to obtain contracts for its products and services and commercial acceptance of advanced affinity separation technology. Shareholders are cautioned that these statements are predictions and these actual events or results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements.
PROMETIC LIFE SCIENCES INC.CONTACT: ProMetic Life Sciences Inc.: Communications:Sylvie Gosselin, Communications Manager, ProMetic Life Sciences Inc.,(514) 341-2115, ext. 2249, s.gosselin@prometic.com; Analysts and Investors:Nicole Blanchard, President, Sun International Communications, (450) 627-6600,nicole.blanchard@isuncomm.com; Media: Dominic Sicotte, President, EchoesMedia Relations Inc., 514-842-9551, Toll free: 866-633-9551,dsicotte@echoesmedia.tv
