Today, Dendreon announced it has sold its Morris Plains, N.J.-based immunotherapy manufacturing facility to Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. The sale was a cash transaction totaling $43 million.
The agreement between the two companies represents a positive outcome for Dendreon and its shareholders, as well for the state of New Jersey. Dendreon continues making progress in improving its financial strength, and the transaction with Novartis aligns with that goal as the company works to build value for its shareholders. Approximately 100 of the existing employees at the Morris Plains facility will be able to retain their jobs and work for Novartis as that company builds out its immunotherapy operations and develops new treatments for patients.
The Morris Plains facility is a state-of-the-art building boasting 173,100 square feet and featuring pioneering capabilities for manufacturing PROVENGE (sipuleucel-T), which is the first autologous cellular immunotherapy to receive approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer. Dendreon announced earlier this year an intention to wind down PROVENGE manufacturing at the Morris Plains facility as part of a strategic restructuring plan to accelerate the company’s path to profitability and future growth.
Headquartered in Seattle, Wash., Dendreon is a biotechnology company focused on targeting cancer and transforming lives through discovering, developing, commercializing, and manufacturing novel therapeutics. Dendreon utilizes its antigen identification, engineering, and cell processing expertise to produce active cellular immunotherapy (ACI) product candidates that are designed to stimulate an immune response in various tumor types. PROVENGE (sipuleucel), the company’s first product, received FDA approval in April 2010. Dendreon is currently exploring the application of other ACI product candidates and small molecules to potentially treat various types of cancer.
For more information, visit www.dendreon.com
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