Bernhard Ehmer was happy: He was very happy, the then head of Biotest AG, based in Dreieich, said in 2017 about the new owner from China: “We now have a strong partner who enables investments in the development of new products and we are at it helps to expand our international presence. ”At that time, the Creat Group had offered the founders and other major shareholders of the then S-Dax company, one of the largest takeovers of a German medium-sized company by the Chinese.
Falk Heunemann
Business editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.
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But the hopes have not been fulfilled.
Because now the investor has commissioned a bank to find a buyer for the listed company with 1,800 employees, which develops and manufactures drugs from blood plasma, for example for the treatment of hemophilia, autoimmune disorders or Covid-19 patients.
Biotest confirms that Creat is looking for a buyer, but otherwise does not want to comment.
Expansion in America not possible
The problem that the Chinese investor has is not likely to be that Biotest is still generating losses; a minus of five to ten million euros is expected for this year. Firstly, sales have risen sharply at the same time, and secondly, the loss is partly explained by the high investments in a new production facility in Dreieich south of Frankfurt / Main, the construction of which alone will cost around 300 million euros and will create 300 jobs.
The main problem is that the planned expansion has not come to fruition. Shortly after the takeover, US authorities had raised concerns that the purchase of data from American plasma donors could also end up in the hands of the Chinese. The deal was only approved after Biotest parted ways with the America business. The British company Bio Products Laboratory (BPL), in which Creat had participated, had to sell blood plasma centers in America as a result.
The United States is by far the most important market for blood plasma products.
Not only do around 60 percent of the donations required come from there, i.e. the raw material for biotest products.
In America's private health system, about twice as much can be earned than in price-regulated Europe.
Even the current CEO Michael Ramroth spoke of a clear location disadvantage for Biotest a good year ago.
"The Chinese concept has not worked since then." The Americans' objection ruined the plan to turn Biotest and BPL into a globally active blood plasma specialist.
Share price rose sharply
The only way out of this dilemma, it quickly became clear, is for the Chinese, who hold 90 percent of the shares, to part with Biotest again. But of course they didn't want to sell as long as there was a risk of losses. But now the owner can hope for a higher selling price. Since the announcement of a possible sale, the share price has risen significantly again, to currently 33 euros - in May 2017, Creat had offered the old owners 28.50 euros per common share and 19 euros per preferred share, and that was considerably more than the shares at the time Were worth the stock market.
In addition, the final acceptance of the new production facility is expected at the end of this month, and the first batches could then be delivered in spring 2022 due to the long approval process. American authorities will also examine the plant intensively so that Biotest can one day export products. The approval process is not trivial, it should cost 300 million euros.
In addition, Biotest is making progress in the development of a new drug for the treatment of Covid-19 diseases. A few days ago, the company was able to report that enough patients - 166 - have now been recruited so that the clinical phase II study, which is necessary for approval, can be carried out. For the drug trimodulin, antibodies against the virus are obtained from the blood plasma that patients have already donated. Around 1000 donations are necessary for each dose. Study results are expected in August, when the application for approval is planned, and the first patients could be treated in 2022.