Biomedix Incubator Ltd. (TASE:BMDX) incubator Meytav Technological Enterprises Innovation Center Ltd. today merged two of its vaccine developing portfolio companies, NasVax Ltd. (TASE: NSVX) and Protea Vaccine Technologies Ltd. NasVax, which is developing an influenza vaccine, will acquire Protea, which is developing a protein based universal vaccine for Streptococcus pneumoniae.
NasVax stated that Protea is negotiating a cooperation agreement with a large international company under "the normal terms for license agreements of this kind". An agreement could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars depending on the success of the product. However, given that Protea's vaccine is still in the preclinical stage, any immediate payment, assuming a contract is signed, will not be very large.
NasVax's investment in Protea depends on the success of these negotiations. NasVax said that it believe that the negotiations will be completed within six to eighteen months.
NasVax and Protea first collaborated in 2006, when NasVax made a supplementary investment in Protea, when it joined Meytav, in exchange for a 6.2% stake in the company at a value of NIS 6.1 million. NasVax said at the time that Protea was due to begin preclinical trials within two years.
In the present deal, NasVax will pay Protea $125,000 immediately, which will not be repaid or converted into shares, except under extraordinary circumstances. NasVax will pay an additional $125,000 when the deal is closed. If no deal is reached, one of the payments will be converted into an investment in Protea.
If Protea signs an agreement with the international company, NasVax will assume full ownership of Protea through an acquisition in cash and shares, at a ratio stipulated in the agreement. NasVax's share price for the deal is set at NIS 3.40, compared with today's opening price of NIS 1.04. The share rose 3.1% to NIS 1.08 today.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 25, 2008
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