Exhibit 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Regeneron Initiates Major Global Collaboration with
Sanofi-aventis
to Develop and Commercialize Fully-Human Therapeutic
Antibodies
Sanofi-aventis plans to increase its stake in Regeneron to
approximately 19%
Tarrytown, NY – November 29, 2007 – Regeneron
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: REGN) and sanofi-aventis (Euronext:
SAN and NYSE: SNY) announced today that they have entered into a
global, strategic collaboration agreement to discover, develop, and
commercialize fully-human therapeutic antibodies utilizing
Regeneron’s proprietary VelociSuite of technologies
(including VelocImmune ® ).
Sanofi-aventis will also increase its ownership of
Regeneron’s outstanding common stock from approximately
4 percent to approximately 19 percent by purchasing
12 million newly issued shares of Regeneron common stock at a
price of $26.00 per share, subject to customary closing conditions
including antitrust clearance.
As part
of the research agreement, sanofi-aventis will make an
$85 million upfront payment to Regeneron and will fund up to
$475 million of research over the next five years.
Sanofi-aventis will have an option to extend the research agreement
for up to an additional three years.
Sanofi-aventis will have the exclusive option to co-develop with
Regeneron each drug candidate in the collaboration portfolio.
Development costs will be shared between the two companies, with
sanofi-aventis funding drug candidate development costs up front
and Regeneron reimbursing half of the development costs from its
share of future profits to the extent they are sufficient for this
purpose.
The
first therapeutic antibody to enter clinical development under the
collaboration is an antibody to the Interleukin-6 receptor (IL-6R),
which has started clinical trials in rheumatoid arthritis. The
second is expected to be an antibody to Delta-like ligand-4 (Dll4),
which is currently slated to start its clinical development in
2008.
For any
new product successfully developed as part of the collaboration,
sanofi-aventis will take the lead in commercialization activities
and will consolidate the sales. Regeneron will have the right to
co-promote any and all collaboration products worldwide. In the
United States, profits will be shared equally. Outside the United
States, profits will be split on a pre-determined sliding scale
with sanofi-aventis’ share ranging from 65 percent to
55 percent. In addition, Regeneron will be entitled to receive
up to a total of $250 million of sales milestone payments when
the collaboration achieves certain aggregate annual ex-U.S. sales
levels, starting at $1 billion.
