Sanofi-Aventis has extended its $18.5 billion (€14 billion) cash offer for US biotech Genzyme until January 21st and left open the option to prolong it further in a sign the French drugmaker is ready for a long battle.
Nearly 1 per cent of Genzyme shareholders tendered their shares against Sanofi's $69-a-share offer before an initial deadline expired on Friday, Sanofi said in a statement.
Sanofi's efforts to buy Genzyme could continue until May next year when Genzyme will hold its annual shareholder meeting, giving Sanofi a chance to try to overturn Genzyme's board.
"In order to provide additional time to allow holders of Genzyme common stock to tender their shares, the tender is now scheduled to expire at 11.59pm, New York City time on January 21st, 2011 unless it is further extended," Sanofi said.
Prolonging the tender could be a way for both companies, whose chief executives so far seem to have dug in their heels, to tie Genzyme's value to the future sales of its key experimental multiple sclerosis drug, Campath, sources have told Reuters.
Genzyme chief executive Henri Termeer raised the possibility of negotiating a contingent value right (CVR) last month as a way to break the stalemate, and Sanofi finance chief Jerome Contamine called it "an interesting idea in principle" to solve value disputes.
Through CVRs, Sanofi could end up paying Genzyme investors more if Campath proves to be the success Genzyme expects it to be. But this is years away so investors would need patience.
Sanofi has called Genzyme's $3.5 billion sales estimate for Campath "unrealistic".
Sanofi made its interest in Genzyme official at the end of August but then decided to put it straight to Genzyme shareholders in a tender offer early October as Genzyme's board said the price was too low to even open talks with Sanofi.
Mr Termeer has said he is prepared to sell the biotech he built up over 25 years, but not at $69 a share. Genzyme, the world's leading maker of drugs for rare genetic diseases, made sales in 2009 of $4.5 billion.
Reuters