Grifols to Acquire Talecris Biotherapeutics Creating a World Leading Provider of Life-Saving Plasma Protein Therapies

BARCELONA, Spain and RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., June 7, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Grifols (GRF.MC) a global healthcare company and leading producer of plasma protein therapies, and Talecris(TLCR 19.97, +4.06, +25.48%) a U.S.-based biotherapeutics products company, today announced that they have signed a definitive agreement through which Grifols will acquire Talecris for a combination of cash and newly-issued Grifols non-voting shares having an aggregate value today of approximately $3.4 billion (euro 2.8 billion), creating a global leader of life-saving and life enhancing plasma protein therapeutics.

The combination of Grifols and Talecris will create a vertically integrated and diversified international plasma protein therapies company, bringing together complementary geographic footprints and products, as well as increased manufacturing scale. Grifols' leading global footprint will benefit from Talecris' strong presence in the United States and Canada. Grifols' available manufacturing capacity will enable Talecris to increase production in the near term. As a result, the combined company will be better able to meet the needs of more patients with under-diagnosed disease states around the world.

In addition, upon completion of the transaction, the combined company will have:

• the ability to derive more protein therapies from every liter of plasma, enhancing access and availability for patients, and optimizing use of collected plasma;
• an established plasma collection operation capable of meeting the combined company's needs to address increasing patient demand and an accelerated path to improving the cost efficiency of the Talecris plasma platform;
• a broad range of key products addressing a variety of therapeutic areas such as neurology, immunology, pulmonology and hematology, among others;
• an enhanced R&D pipeline of complementary products and new recombinant projects that will drive sustainable growth;
• a well established clinical research program in the U.S.

Grifols Chairman and CEO Victor Grifols commented, "The acquisition of Talecris furthers our vision to better serve patients and health care professionals with innovative products, a strong clinical research capability and new research into recombinant therapies. We look forward to combining the strengths of both companies to improve the quality of the lives of patients around the world, while positioning the enlarged group for long term profitable growth."

Talecris Chairman and CEO Lawrence D. Stern commented, "We believe that Grifols' well-established reputation, know-how and expertise will enable the combined entity to meet the needs of more patients. Our employees will benefit from the opportunities available to them as part of a larger, global organization committed to the expansion of Talecris' existing business, the development of our pipeline products, and the maintenance of our culture of compliance and quality. Importantly, our stockholders will realize a compelling premium and benefit from the ability of the combined business to accelerate key gross margin improvement opportunities within Talecris."