Eckert & Ziegler enters exclusive sales agreement with Zyklotron for Fluorodeoxyglucose

Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG (ISIN DE0005659700), a company specializing in special compounds for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, via its subsidiary company Eckert & Ziegler f-con Deutschland GmbH closed an exclusive sales agreement with the Karlsruhe-based ZAG Zyklotron AG for the regular delivery of Fluorodeoxyglucose (18F) (FDG). FDG is used in the context of the so called Positron Emission Tomography (PET) for the safe and quick recognition of even the smallest tumour foci. Due to its short half-life FDG has to be produced every day in cyclotrons and be delivered freshly to the clinics. Moreover, Eckert & Ziegler acquired the option for also producing and selling other radio-diagnostic products at the Karlsruhe cyclotron.

Eckert & Ziegler's member of the Managing Board responsible for its radiopharmaceuticals, Dr. Andre Hess, and Eckert & Ziegler's f-con Managing Director, Axel Schmidt, in a joint statement commented: "We are looking forward to the closer co-operation with the Karlsruhe institution. It allows us to more efficiently supply the south-western and southern regions of Germany with short-lived radiopharmaceuticals and thus to further expand our leading production and sales network in Germany. But we also plan to expand our activities in adjacent territories, such as Poland. The peculiar thing about the Karlsruhe institution, though, is that large amounts of production capacities are available there and that the team there has a very broad know-how in cyclotron technology."

Eckert & Ziegler already operates several production sites for radiopharmaceuticals in Germany and, besides Fluor-18-based radiodiagnostic products for nuclear-medical imaging (PET), also markets the approved product "Yttriga", a precursor product of numerous radiotherapeutic products. Moreover, Eckert & Ziegler provides synthesis technology and Gallium-68 radionuclide generator for nuclear-medical institutions worldwide.

For the current fiscal year the Board of Directors expects a turnover of EUR 105 million and earnings per share of EUR 1.80 EUR. For the fiscal year 2011 earnings per share of EUR 2.00 EUR (excluding acquisitions) are predicted.