PHF to appoint new adviser on Polfa Tarchomin sale

2010-03-05

Polski Holding Farmaceutyczny (PHF) on 3 March announced a new tender for advisory services in the privatisation of Polfa Tarchomin (PT), after the previous advisor was dropped due to legal issues.
It is not clear whether the change poses a risk for the auction’s timetable. Last month deputy treasury minister Jan Bury said the sale could be completed by the end of the year, provided that invitations for potential buyers were sent out by late April/early May. Also in February, PHF CEO Artur Wozniak said potential investors (approximately 90 pharma firms from around the world) would be approached in mid-April, and that PHF was in the process of verifying the valuation and legal analyses prepared by Access, the external advisers.
However, the contract with Access had to be terminated after it emerged that the company had in the meantime changed its legal identity by creating a new firm, without informing PHF.
PT is the largest but worst performing of the three Polfa drug makers which PHF aims to sell off by the end of the year. Polfa Pabianice has already been sold to Adamed while the auction for Polfa Warszawa is fairly advanced, with three investors short-listed for late-stage talks.