Anthrax scare boosts Berna sales

Kuno Sommer, chief executive of Berna Biotech Keystone

Berna Biotech expects sales in its core vaccines business to rise by 40 per cent next year in the wake of biological terror attacks in the United States.

“For the current and next business year, Berna Biotech expects sales to average well above SFr200 million ($121 million),” the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

It added that its EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) profit margin would exceed 20 per cent.

Berna Biotech was radically restructured two years ago to focus on its vaccines business. This received a boost in recent months from the fear of biological terrorism since the anthrax attacks in the US.

“Sales of the smallpox vaccine are as expected,” the company said in its statement.

Demand for vaccines

Existing contracts amount to SFr150 million and further sales worth between SFr50 and SFr70 million are currently under negotiation.

In the wake of anthrax attacks in the United States, scientists warned governments to take precautions against a potentially catastrophic outbreak of smallpox, which was eradicated worldwide in 1979.

Several countries have already signed contracts for the vaccine that Berna produces, and negotiations with other countries are still in progress.

Berna, the former Swiss Serum and Vaccine Institute, has not disclosed details of the countries involved, although the Italian health ministry said last month it had bought five million smallpox vaccines for $45 million (SFr74 million).

Other strengths

On Tuesday, Berna said sales of other vaccines were also doing well.

“After the successful registration of the flu vaccine, Inflexal V, in Europe and the renewal of United States approval for Vivotif, the world’s only oral typhoid vaccine, the company expects 40 per cent growth in its vaccine business,” the company stated.

Berna, which employs 600 staff in Bern, added that the financial success of its business would put it in a position to target possible acquisition candidates in the vaccines market.

Up to SFr220 million in windfall sales revenue this year and next from its stocks of smallpox vaccine amid the global bio-terrorism scare will help finance clinical trials of new products and top up the company’s war chest for acquisitions, said chief executive, Kuno Sommer.

Sommer added that Berna was in a “fact-finding” phase to identify potential takeover candidates in the sector, which is dominated by big players Aventis, GSK and Merck.

Joint venture

Berna and Swiss biochemicals and drug components maker, Bachem, have formed a joint venture to develop a novel vaccine based on virosomes and peptides which could act against a skin cancer, malaria, Alzheimer’s disease and hepatitis C.

Aschim Kaufhold, who recently joined Berna as head of clinical research after leaving Glaxo SmithKline, predicts that a potential vaccine against Alzheimer’s disease is a decade away and said Berna had no plans at this stage to study a vaccine against HIV, the virus that causes Aids.

swissinfo with agencies