Teva Pharmaceutical to purchase Mexican pharmaceutical manufacturer

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. on Thursday announced it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire Representaciones e Investigaciones Médicas, S.A. de C.V. (Rimsa), a leading pharmaceutical manufacturing and distribution company in Mexico.

Under the agreement, Teva would also acquire a portfolio of products and companies, intellectual property, assets, and pharmaceutical patents in Latin America and Europe. The transaction would be debt free and cash free, for an aggregate of $2.3 billion.

Through this acquisition, Teva will become a leading pharmaceutical company in Mexico. Rimsa’s revenue in 2014 was $227 million with an annual growth, year over year of 10.6 percent since 2011.

“This acquisition delivers on our strategy of increasing our presence in key emerging markets in order to position Teva for long-term growth in these markets,” Teva CEO and President Erez Vigodman said. “Rimsa will provide Teva with a significant platform for growth by combining the strong Rimsa brand, licensed portfolio of differentiated, patent-protected products, promising pipeline, significant relationships with physicians, patients and health care providers and its strong commercial presence.”

Teva’s Board of Directors, led by Chairman Yitzhak Peterburg, unanimously approved the acquisition. It expects to close these transactions by early 2016.