Acquisition of Porgès Laboratories by
Mentor Corporation + Acquisition of
Mentor Corporationby Coloplast
Mentor
Acquires Leading French Urology Company
Friday February 9, 2001, 8:01 am Eastern Time
SOURCE: Mentor Corporation
Mentor Acquires Leading French Urology Company
SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Feb. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Mentor Corporation
(Nasdaq: MNTR - news) announced today that it has completed the
acquisition of Porges S.A., a subsidiary of Sanofi-Synthelabo. The
transaction was valued at EUR 35 million, or about $32 million.
Porges is a manufacturer of urological products, supplying a complete
range of products for the urological surgeon, including diagnostic
tools and various devices for surgery and for postoperative follow-up.
Porges holds the leading market share for urological products in
France and has a strong position throughout Europe. The company's
sales last year were EUR 46 million, or about $42 million.
Porges has headquarters in Paris, with manufacturing facilities
in Sarlat, France, and marketing subsidiaries in eight countries
in Europe, plus one in Japan.
``I am very excited about this acquisition,'' said Christopher J.
Conway, president of Mentor. ``We believe that Porges and Mentor
will be a powerful combination in the global urology market. Our
product lines are complementary and together we have the broadest
and most advanced line of urological products in the world. Our
combined sales of products in this market exceed $150 million.
``The opportunities for growth with our shared technologies and
markets are considerable,'' Conway said. ``Porges provides an ideal
platform for the European launch of new Mentor products like the
Suspend® incontinence implant and our brachytherapy line. Likewise,
Mentor will begin actively marketing the Porges product line, which
is not currently distributed in the U.S.''
With sales of EUR 6 billion in 2000 and 29,000 employees in more
than 100 countries, Sanofi-Synthelabo ranks among the world's top
20 pharmaceutical companies.
Mentor Corporation develops and manufactures specialized medical
products, which it markets throughout the world. This release contains,
in addition to historical information, forward-looking statements.
Such statements are based on management's current expectations and
are subject to a number of uncertainties and risks that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those described in the
forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such a difference
include, but are not limited to, those described in the Company's
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2000.
SOURCE: Mentor Corporation
Porgès,
the medical devices subsidiary of Sanofi-Synthélabo in urology,
sold to Mentor Corporation
Paris, February 09, 2001
Sanofi-Synthélabo announced today that it has sold 100% of
the shares of Porgès, its medical devices subsidiary in urology,
to Mentor Corporation.
The transaction is valued at 35 million €uros.
Porgès is a manufacturer of urological products, and supplies
a complete range of products meeting the urology surgeon’s
requirements, including diagnostic tools (biopsy needles) and various
devices for surgery and postoperative follow-up (prostatic catheters).
Porgès has subsidiaries in 8 countries in Europe and one
in Japan, a manufacturing facility in Sarlat, France, and a distribution
center in Palaiseau, France.
In 2000, Porgès sales figure reached 46 million €uros.
Mentor Corporation develops, manufactures and markets specialized
medical products, such as surgically implantable devices, surgical
equipment and disposable medical and surgical supplies. The Company’s
executive and sales offices are located in Santa Barbara, California,
with manufacturing and research operations in Minnesota, Texas,
and The Netherlands.
With Sales of 6 billion €uros in 2000 and 29,000 employees
in more than 100 countries, Sanofi-Synthélabo ranks among
the world’s top 20 pharmaceutical companies. Sanofi-Synthélabo
is focused on a core group of four therapeutic areas : cardiovascular
disease/thrombosis, central nervous system, internal medicine and
oncology; this enables the Group to be a significant player in each
of these areas.
