The UK-based Astrazeneca said that it has decided to sell the commercial rights of five of its drugs- mainly used to treat hypertension--to Atnahs Pharma.
The business offloaded for up to $390 million as it focuses on new potential medicines to boost its market globally.
Atnahs will make an upfront payment of $350m to Astrazeneca.
Astrazeneca may also receive future sales-contingent payments of up to $40m between 2020 and 2022.
The Cambridge-based company will continue to make and supply the drugs, which include inderal and tenormin.
The divestment is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2020.
According to the deal inked, Astrazeneca has agreed to sell the global commercial rights of inderal (propranolol), tenormin (atenolol), tenoretic (atenolol, chlorthalidone fixed-dose combination), zestril (lisinopril) and zestoretic (lisinopril, hydrochlorothiazide fixed-dose combination) to Atnahs Pharma.
The agreement excludes the rights in the US and India, which were previously divested, and in Japan, which will be retained by Astrazeneca. The medicines have lost their patent protection globally.
Astrazeneca will continue to manufacture and supply inderal, tenormin, tenoretic, zestril and zestoretic to Atnahs during a transition period.
Atnahs is owned by Vijay and Bhikhu Patel of Waymade.
Astrazeneca was created through the combination of Astra of Sweden and Zeneca of Britain in 1999.
