Roche Picks 12 Possible Partners for Tamiflu

Swiss drug maker Roche Holding said it had chosen 12 potential partners for the production of Tamiflu and granted one sub-license for the antiviral drug to Shanghai Pharmaceutical.

Basel-based Roche said it had compiled the short list of potential partners, which it did not identify, after evaluating about 200 applicants interested in helping with certain steps in the manufacturing of Tamiflu. It didn’t say how many it would finally choose.

Roche said it would use the partners, which include major pharmaceutical makers, large generic manufacturers and specialty chemical producers, mainly as backups, to meet specific regional needs and to prepare for any large additional government orders.

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