Santarus and Norgine enter into a licensing agreement for ZEGERID products

Santarus, Inc. (NASDAQ: SNTS), a specialty biopharmaceutical company, and Norgine B.V., a European specialty pharmaceutical company, today announced that they have entered into a licensing agreement granting exclusive rights to Norgine to develop, manufacture and commercialize prescription immediate-release ZEGERID^® products incorporating the proton pump inhibitor omeprazole in combination with one or more buffering agents in specified markets in Western, Central and Eastern Europe.

Under the license agreement, Norgine will pay Santarus a $2.5 million upfront fee. Santarus will also be entitled to receive up to an additional $10 million in milestone payments upon the achievement of certain regulatory events, subject to reductions based on Norgine’s actual out-of pocket costs directly related to its clinical, regulatory and reimbursement efforts for a “major” country as defined under the license agreement. Norgine will also pay Santarus tiered royalties ranging from the mid- to high-teens, subject to reduction in certain limited circumstances, on net sales of any products sold under the license agreement.

“As a leading European specialty pharmaceutical company and with a focus on gastroenterology products, Norgine is an ideal partner for Santarus,” said Gerald T. Proehl, president and chief executive officer of Santarus. “This license for markets in Europe is further execution of our strategy to maximize the value of our immediate-release ZEGERID proton pump inhibitor technology.”

Peter Stein, chief executive officer of Norgine, said, “This license agreement with Santarus supports our objective to use our European infrastructure to bring innovative products to our markets. We look forward to developing ZEGERID immediate-release omeprazole products in the markets covered under our agreement.”