BOCA RATON, Fla., June 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nabi Biopharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: NABI - News) today announced that it has created the Nabi Biologics strategic business unit (SBU) and expanded the role of Dr. Raafat Fahim, Senior Vice President, Research, Technical and Production Operations, to include the new position of Chief Operating Officer and General Manager of the Biologics SBU. Nabi Biologics is responsible for advancing the company’s protein and immunological products and development pipeline, including Nabi- HB® [Hepatitis B Immune Globulin (Human)], Nabi-HB® Intravenous [Hepatitis B Immune Globulin (Human) Intravenous], HEBIG(TM) [Hepatitis B Immune Globulin (Human) Intravenous], Civacir® [Hepatitis C Immune Globulin (Human)], ATG- Fresenius S [Anti-T-Lymphocyte Immune Globulin (Rabbit)], IVIG [Intravenous Immunoglobulin] and Nabi® Anti-D [Rho (D) Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)].
The company also has expanded the role of Jordan Siegel to Senior Vice President, Finance and Administration, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. In addition to his current role, Mr. Siegel will be responsible for the Corporate Shared Services group, which will streamline and improve all Human Resources, Information Technology and Business Development activities at Nabi and support the company’s transition into two independent business units - Nabi Biologics and Nabi Pharmaceuticals.
Nabi also provided today updates regarding the company’s ongoing operations, its strategic alternatives process and the Nabi-HB regulatory efforts:
- In connection with the formation of the Nabi Biologics and Corporate Shared Services groups the company eliminated 32 jobs - approximately 5 percent of its workforce - from which it expects to realize nearly $3 million on an annualized basis. - The strategic alternatives process is continuing with the support of Banc of America Securities and Nabi is pursuing discussions for the sale of the whole or a significant part of the company. - Nabi has retained the regulatory consulting firm Cato Research Ltd. and together is working with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to most expeditiously respond to the FDA’s requests and complete its data submission for Nabi-HB® Intravenous [Hepatitis B Immune Globulin (Human) Intravenous] for the prevention of re-infection with hepatitis B disease in HBV-positive liver transplant patients. Nabi and Cato Research have already had several discussions with the FDA to define the additional data the FDA is seeking from previously-completed clinical trials. Nabi is currently compiling the additional requested information.
“Since I became Interim Chief Executive Officer and President of Nabi in February of this year, we have focused and energized the approach of our strategic alternatives process and have leveraged the expertise and success of Cato Research to work more effectively with the FDA to secure expanded regulatory approvals for Nabi-HB,” said Dr. Leslie Hudson, Interim President and Chief Executive Officer of Nabi Biopharmaceuticals. “We are achieving the strategic corporate goals that will help us realize the value of our pipeline - the creation of Nabi Biologics and, soon, Nabi Pharmaceuticals.”
About Nabi Biopharmaceuticals
Nabi Biopharmaceuticals leverages its experience and knowledge in powering the immune system to develop and market products that fight serious medical conditions. The company has one product on the market today: Nabi-HB® [Hepatitis B Immune Globulin (Human)]. Nabi Biopharmaceuticals is focused on developing products that address unmet medical needs and offer commercial opportunities in our core business areas: Hepatitis and transplant, Gram- positive bacterial infections and nicotine addiction. The company has just announced the formation of the first of two strategic business units: Nabi Biologics. Nabi Biologics has responsibility for the company’s protein and immunological products and development pipeline, including Nabi-HB. The second business unit, Nabi Pharmaceuticals, is expected to be formed later this year and will have responsibility for the NicVAX® (Nicotine Conjugate Vaccine) and StaphVAX® (Staphylococcus aureus Polysaccharide Conjugate Vaccine) development programs, as well as for the continuing milestone-related clinical development obligations following the sale of PhosLo® (calcium acetate). For a complete list of pipeline products, please go to: http://www.nabi.com/pipeline/index.php. The company is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. For additional information about Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, please visit our Web site: http://www.nabi.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this release that are not strictly historical are forward- looking statements and include statements about reorganization of our current business into two new business units, our strategic alternatives process and clinical trials and studies. You can identify these forward-looking statements because they involve our expectations, beliefs, projections, anticipations or other characterizations of future events or circumstances. These forward- looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of any number of factors. These factors include, but are not limited to, risks relating to our ability to: realize anticipated cost savings related to job elimination due to greater than anticipated severance-related costs or other factors; successfully partner with third parties to fund, develop, manufacture and/or distribute our existing and pipeline products, including NicVAX and our Gram- positive infections products; obtain successful clinical trial results; our ability to successfully complete our strategic alternatives process; generate sufficient cash flow from sales of products or from milestone or royalty payments to fund our development and commercialization activities; attract and maintain the human and financial resources to commercialize current products and bring to market products in development; depend upon third parties to manufacture or fill our products; obtain regulatory approval for our products in the U.S. or other markets, including approval of Nabi-HB Intravenous; realize sales from Nabi-HB due to patient treatment protocols, the number of liver transplants performed in HBV-positive patients and competitive products; achieve market acceptance of our products; expand our sales and marketing capabilities or enter into and maintain arrangements with third parties to market and sell our products; effectively and/or profitability use, or utilize the full capacity of, our vaccine manufacturing facility; manufacture NicVAX or other products in our own vaccine manufacturing facility; comply with reporting and payment obligations under government rebate and pricing programs; raise additional capital on acceptable terms, or at all; and re-pay our outstanding convertible senior notes when due. Many of these factors are more fully discussed, as are other factors, in the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2006 and our Quarterly Report for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 on Form 10-Q with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Source: Nabi Biopharmaceuticals
