Novacap, a Lyon, France-headquartered company providing custom manufacturing services for pharmaceuticals, advanced specialties and cosmetics, has agreed to acquire PCI Synthesis, a Newburyport, Massachusetts-based contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) of small-molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).

PCI Synthesis offers a range of services, including process research and early-stage development as well as commercial production of new chemical entities, generic APIs, and other specialty chemical products.

PCI Synthesis operates a research and development (R&D) facility in Devens, Massachusetts and a manufacturing facility in Newburyport, Massachusetts. It has annual turnover of approximately $32 million. The company recently expanded into new offerings, such as GMP manufacturing for nutraceuticals and pharmaceutical foods, large-scale cryogenic manufacturing, large-scale chromatography, controlled-substance development, and medical-grade polymers.

The combination of the two companies will provide PCI Synthesis with additional resources to continue its development while reinforcing Novacap’s position in pharmaceutical synthesis with 12 cGMP sites, two main R&D centers and a range of services and technologies for clinical development and commercial manufacturing. Novacap posted sales of $1 billion in 2017, operates 28 industrial plants, and employs more than 3,000 people globally.

 “The acquisition of PCI Synthesis perfectly fits with our strategic roadmap as it will strengthen our offering to the pharmaceutical industry and provide Novacap with a strong and innovative platform to accelerate our development in the U.S,” said Pierre Luzeau, Chief Executive Officer of Novacap, in a June 20, 2018 company statement. “We have been impressed by the outstanding achievement of PCI Synthesis over the last years and its promising pipeline of projects.”

The closing of this acquisition remains subject to customary merger control approval.

Source: PCI Synthesis and Novacap