Antara (fenofibrate) is indicated as an adjunct treatment for hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia in combination with diet. Clinical studies have shown that Antara along with a healthy diet is effective in reducing triglycerides and increasing high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) levels.
The agreement covers Antara 130mg capsules. Antara is part of the $1 billion fenofibrate market and will be commercialized by Oscient’s national sales force, which currently is marketing Factive (gemifloxacin mesylate) tablets and Testim 1% testosterone gel.
Under the terms of the agreement, Oscient will make a payment of $78 million to Reliant for US rights to Antara, plus a purchase of approximately $4 million in existing inventory.
Subject to a number of closing conditions, Oscient expects the transaction to close in late August 2006 and expects its salesforce to begin commercializing Antara shortly thereafter.
“Acquiring Antara, a product that achieved approximately $35 million in revenues during the past 12 months, will dramatically expand our revenue base, accelerate our path to profitability and allow us to leverage the investment in our sales infrastructure, a goal we had set for this year,” stated Steven Rauscher, president and CEO of Oscient.
Oscient has also entered into an agreement with Paul Capital Partners’ Paul Royalty Fund II, LP, a leading, international healthcare investment fund, to provide $70 million of financing for this product acquisition. This financing is also subject to closing conditions.