Porton Biopharma Limited, the UK biopharmaceutical research, development and manufacturing company has signed an exclusive, worldwide licensing agreement with Clinigen Group plc for the distribution of Erwinase/ Erwinaze, the Company’s life-saving treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, a cancer of the blood predominantly affecting children.
Clinigen is a UK-based healthcare business with an international distribution network, a focus on cancer and a particular ability to match products and patients. This new relationship with Clinigen enables the Company to grow and further the supply of Erwinase. PBL will receive future sales-based milestone payments, alongside tiered royalty payments based upon worldwide net sales. The agreement represents a return for PBL and its sole shareholder, the UK Government’s Department of Health and Social Care.
The new contract with Clinigen will begin on 1 January 2021. The current distributor of Erwinase, Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC, will continue to distribute product to ensure continuity of supply for patients during a transition period.
Soren Demin, PBL’s Commercial Director said: “We are delighted to be working with Clinigen in the future with the signing of this exclusive licensing agreement for the worldwide distribution of Erwinase, our life-saving treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, to meet the growing demand for the product worldwide and to explore new indications.”
Roger Hinton, PBL’s Managing Director said: “The agreement with Clinigen follows a major investment of more than £50 million during the past three years in PBL’s manufacturing facilities. The investment included a new fermentation facility, which was opened in 2018 and has added considerable manufacturing capacity to meet future demand for Erwinase, which had sales of $177 million in 2019. PBL is now ideally placed to further grow the business and build on our pipeline of life-saving and protecting biopharmaceutical products.”
