Orfe buys out Cefarm pharmaceuticals of Zielona Gora

The board of pharmaceuticals distributor Orfe announced yesterday that the company has been chosen a strategic investor in Cefarm Zielona Gora. Orfe will establish a partnership with the Lubuski voivode and the new company will pick up all Cefarms assets. Representatives of Orfe would not reveal how much they paid for the newly-acquired stakes, but most likely it was around zl.12 million. The purchase of Cefarm Zielona Gora marks a success for Orfe, since thus far it has not controlled any wholesale firm in the western part of Poland. After completing the transaction, Orfe, controlled by Dutch OPG, will boost its share in the wholesale distribution of pharmaceuticals in Poland to 10%. Until now PGF, the leader of medicine distribution in Poland with a 25% stake, was the industrys most successful company in taking over large numbers of local companies from the Cefarm group. In the future PGF will most likely be the only player not seeking to purchase the remaining unprivatized Cefarms, since the company has completed acquisition procedures and is concentrating on putting its capital group in order.(Gazeta Wyborcza, p.19) A.D