Novartis announces strategic partnership with Lonza to boost biologics pipeline

After having unveiled plans to acquire biotech researcher Speedel (See: Novartis to buy Swiss biotech company Speedel for $880 million), Novartis today said it had entered in to a unique and flexible long-term partnership with biotech leader Lonza, for the joint development and manufacture of the Novartis biological pipeline.

Novartis has been targetting biotechnology as agroeth area like other European drugmakers who have been buying out smaller biotechnology firms in order to secure their profitability, improve their pipelines of drugs under development or testing and fight back competition from generic drugmakers when their patents expire.

Thwe Swiss drug maker says extensive research and development (R&D) over the past few years has resulted in a sharp increase in the number of biological compounds in its list that currently account for about a quarter of the Novartis development portfolio. The Novartis Biologics unit aims to further expand the biological pipeline.

"For Lonza, it represents a change in approach from a typical CMO deal," said Dr. Stephan Kutzer, head of Lonza Biopharmaceuticals. "It focuses on a real collaborative approach to development and manufacturing asset planning to ensure our customers can bring their pipeline of products to the market in an efficient and timely manner'', ''We believe this is the beginning of a long partnership that will bring significant benefits to both parties.''

Lonza will contribute its biotech leadership knowledge in process development and the manufacturing of complex processes to the collaboration. In combination with the strong Novartis research and development pipeline, the agreement generates significant benefits for both parties.

The collaboration will involve Lonza in the development, scale-up and manufacturing of Novartis biological pipeline. Lonza will provide development services from its R&D center in Slough, UK, using Lonza's GS Gene Expression System, and large scale manufacturing capacity from its operations in the US, Spain and Singapore.