US$23m Annual Additional Long Term ContractsInitial Additional...

US$23m Annual Additional Long Term Contracts
Initial Additional Long Term Plasma Contracts
Resulting from Pyramid Acquisition
ATLANTA, GA – September 26, 2005 – Life Therapeutics (ASX: LFE) announced
today that it has acquired additional long term plasma contracts as a result of
completing the acquisition of Pyramid Biological Corporation.
Pyramid had completed these contracts subject to their being acquired by Life
Therapeutics and the closure of this acquisition was subject to these deals being
completed. The largest of these long term supply contracts is with Octapharma, a
major European plasma fractionator. This is a 5 year agreement with a US$22
million 2006 source plasma purchase escalating to US$32 million pa for the next four
years.
“These long term contracts further increase Life Therapeutics market share of the
global plasma and biodiagnostic markets” said Dr Hari Nair Managing Director and
Chief Executive Officer of Life Therapeutics. “This is the first of the top 5
fractionators to sign a critical long term source plasma supply contract with Life
Therapeutics, and validates our plasma collection business strategy. This contract
and others like it establishes Life Therapeutics as a major player in the plasma
supply industry” he added.
“With these additional sales, Life Therapeutics has now increased its 2006 sales
forecasts to A$100million or US$ $74 million” said John Manusu, CFO of Life
Therapeutics.
These long term contracts now complete the final condition associated with the
Pyramid purchase of increasing their yearly sales by US$20m pa by the end of the
3rd year post acquisition. Life Therapeutics will now have a minimum of US$43m pa
sales from the Pyramid group. As a result, Life therapeutics will issue the Pyramid
shareholders the contingent US$5m of shares in Life Therapeutics in 3 years time.
Pyramid Group reported revenues of approximately US$20 million in 2004 with 225
employees, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. The company operates five
plasma collection centers, one in Van Nuys, CA, two in San Diego, CA, one in
Colton, CA and one in Las Vegas, NV. Pyramid was founded in Los Angeles in
1974.
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Life Therapeutics is an international company with 444 employees, located in
Australia and the United States with manufacturing operations in both countries and
13 plasma donor centers in eight American states. Life Therapeutics recently
established its U.S. American Depositary Receipt (ADR) Level I program which
enables trading in Life Therapeutics shares by U.S. based investors and is an
important step toward the company’s ultimate objective of achieving a full listing on
NASDAQ stock exchange.
The company’s four divisions are all headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and include:
Life Sera, Life Gels, Life Diagnostics, and Manufacturing.
Life Sera collects specialty plasma, including Anti-D and Hepatitis B from a donor
base of more than 5,000 in thirteen U.S. collection centers. The plasma is then sold
to blood fractionators who process it into hyperimmune therapeutic products.
Life Gels offers pre-cast gels for use in biological research and diagnostic testing,
including a variety of electrophoresis systems. It also offers ultra-sensitive and rapid
stains, molecular weight markers, and specially formulated buffers.
Life Diagnostics provides highly specific diagnostic tests for blood-clotting disorders
and source plasma products for blood-borne diseases. Technologies include
specialized blood coagulation tests to predict the risk of thrombosis and bleeding
disorders. It also collects high-titer source plasma and serum used to make
diagnostic kits.
Life Manufacturing incorporates the Gradiflow™ technology with the manufacture of
therapeutic and diagnostic products. Gradiflow™ is a patented process that
simultaneously purifies proteins and removes all viral pathogens, and infectious prion
proteins.