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2008-08-01 Finnish Tamro to buy 44 pharmacies in Lithuania

Lithuania Finnish drug wholesaler Tamro, said it had agreed to buy 44 pharmacies in Lithuania, a deal that would make its pharmacy chain the country's third-largest and raise its pharmacy market share to 10 percent.

Tamro Group has agreed to buy all the shares of pharmacy chains UAB Farma vaistines, UAB Herbarijos vaistines and the real estate company UAB Naujininku turto vaistines in Lithuania. Their combined turnover was some 20 million euros in 2007. The acquisition is conditional upon the approval by the Competition Authority of Lithuania and is expected to come into effect in late August 2008. The purchase price will not be disclosed. The acquisition of 44 new pharmacies will increase the Tamro controlled pharmacies' market share in Lithuania to 10% and Tamro's Seimos vaistine will become Lithuania's 3rd largest pharmacy chain. Ranking as the second largest wholesaler in the market, Tamro Lithuania holds a 19% market share in pharmaceutical wholesaling. "Tamro Group has been looking for opportunities to expand pharmacy activities in the Baltic markets. This acquisition strengthens our market position and offers exciting opportunities to develop our operations in Lithuania", states Sebastian Jägerhorn, Director of Legal Affairs and M&A, Tamro Group. "Farma and Herbarijos chains have been Tamro's customers for the past seven years. I'm very pleased to see Tamro as the new owner of our chains. Tamro's excellent business conduct and international expertise in the pharmacy market are well known", says Ingi Guðjónsson, chairman of the investment company Litis, the majority owner of the Farma and Herbarijos chains. The biggest players in the Lithuania pharmacy market are Eurofarmacijos vaistines, Camelia and Tamro. All pharmacy chains have grown significantly over the last years, now covering together 85% of the market. The total value of the market in pharmacy purchase prices was EUR 346 million in 2007. reuters, kauppalehti.fi