Doliprane sale: French investment fund PAI improves the size of its offer for Opella

What if Doliprane remained in the French fold? The French investment fund PAI Partners, a competitor of the American fund CD&R, has improved its offer “by an additional 200 million euros” for the acquisition of Sanofi’s subsidiary Opella, which markets Doliprane, an entourage source said on Thursday of the fund.

“We have presented an improved offer of a further 200 million euros”, which makes PAI “the best bidder financially” and “also from a social point of view” in this matter, according to this source who did not specify the amount of the offer competing offer or your own.

Sanofi announced last week that it was in talks with the American investment fund CD&Air to potentially sell it 50% of its consumer protection company Opella, its subsidiary that markets around a hundred brands of non-prescription products around the world.

“We can participate in the solution”, believes this source close to the Italian flag, while the issue arouses strong emotion in public opinion and strong concerns in the political class and among Opella employees due to the attachment of the Doliprane brand in French society.

Strike at Sanofi

Before proceeding with this bidding war, an offer was presented on Thursday from the French fund PAI Partners, supported by the funds of Abu Dhabi Avia, Singapore GIC and the Canadian BCI “at a price equivalent” to that of CD&R. this source.

Sanofi, on the other hand, focused on CD&Rs taking into account strategic criteria, in particular the fact that the United States is Opella’s first market with almost 25% of its turnover. Asked early Thursday afternoon, Sanofi declined to comment.

VideoDoliprane: the government does not rule out “blocking the operation”

For their part, Sanofi’s CFDT and CGT unions called for a strike on Wednesday, renewable starting from Thursday. The latter fear a “social collapse” of the 1,700 jobs that Opella has on French soil, of which 500 at the Compiègne site (Oise) and 250 at the Lisieux (Calvados) plant, entirely dedicated to Doliprane.

The president of Sanofi France, Audrey Duval, tried to reassure her employees on Thursday, guaranteeing RTL the “sustainability” of jobs, production sites and Doliprane. The government, for its part, has sought assurances from stakeholders in terms of maintaining employment, industrial footprint, location of headquarters and research and development.