The Elan Corporation, which employs 750 people in Athlone, Co Westmeath, has reached agreement in principle to buy out its two joint venture partners in its British and Irish direct pharmaceutical companies.
Elan's president and chief operating officer, Mr John Groom, said yesterday the corporation had agreed to purchase Warner Lambert's interest in Elan Pharma in Britain and Parke-Davis's shareholding in Elan Ireland, in a bid to build its Irish and British pharmaceutical business.
The company has not disclosed the financial details of the acquisitions.
Mr Groom said Elan had enjoyed a very successful partnership with Warner-Lambert which had provided the company with the necessary infrastructure to introduce its products directly into key markets. The current negotiations will, however, bring the two companies directly under Elan's control, creating two wholly-owned subsidiaries.
The two transactions are expected to boost Elan's total product earnings by more than $15 million (£10.27 million).
Meanwhile, in a separate transaction, Elan has announced that it has reached agreement with Rhone-Poulenc Rorer (RPR) to purchase its Univer and Nifensar products for the British and Irish market. The drugs are used to treat hypertension and angina and were originally licensed to RPR by Elan in 1987.
Elan yesterday reported continued strong growth in the third quarter of 1997, recording a 45 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to $124.1 million on the back of strong growth in its directly marketed products.
Sales increased from $225.8 million to $279.7 million over the nine-month period. The figures include first time contributions of sales and earnings of Athena Neurosciences, purchased by Elan in July 1996.
