Chitinor AS has reached an agreement with BASF SE to acquire BASF’s marine biopolymers chitosan business operations. The deal marks a strategic milestone for Chitinor’s business development plans for expanding its biopolymer product ranges and business-to-business operations.
Under the agreement Chitinor will acquire production facilities in Tromsø, Norway, inventories, patents, Chitopharm trademark, product and application technologies, and global customer portfolio for all chitosan product ranges, including functional cosmetic ingredients and Chitopharm pharmaceutical ingredients with corresponding Drug Master Files. The transaction is expected to be formally completed in August 2012. “With the acquisition of BASF’s chitosan business operations, we are significantly strengthening our product and customer portfolio for our arine biopolymer business area. The inclusion of BASF’s production facilities in Tromsø is a strategic and synergistic fit to our existing biopolymer operations in Troms, Northern Norway,” said Thorleif Thormodsen, CEO of Seagarden ASA and Chairman of the Board of Seagarden ASA’s fully-owned daughter company, Chitinor AS. “The combination of BASF’s proprietary technology for tailored manufacture of high quality chitosans for cosmetic and pharmaceutical uses and Chitinor’s track-record and know-how related to chitin based biopolymers will provide our customers with a strong supply-chain for top quality products unmatched by anyone. Importantly, the acquisition also represents a valuable addition to our customer portfolio in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical markets,” added Bjarte Langhelle, commercial director.
