Drug company ProStrakan considers takeover approach

Drug firm ProStrakan said it has had a number of approaches to buy it.

The Galashiels manufacturer has rejected one offer from the Dutch group Norgine but was "beginning to evaluate" other approaches.

Shares in ProStrakan suffered after delays in the US of a pain relief drug, Abstral, and manufacturing problems of its anti-nausea patch Sancuso.

However despite its problems, the company said total revenue for the past 10 months rose by 20% to £76.8m.

ProStrakan said it had rebuffed a takeover approach from the Amsterdam-based pharmaceutical company Norgine because it undervalued the company.

Earlier this month Norgine snapped up an eighth of the Borders firm when it bought shares from another major company in the sector, Sanofi-Aventis.

ProStrakan's acting chief executive Peter Allen said: "The last few months have been interesting and challenging."

He added: "We fully expect that the manufacturing issues with Sancuso and the approval of Abstral in the US will be concluded this year so that revenues from both products will start early in the New Year."