The State has obtained “guarantees” on the employment, production and development of the Sanofi subsidiary, Opella, which markets Doliprane, Economy Minister Antoine Armand announced on X on Sunday evening.
“The State, through Bpifrance, will be a shareholder to ensure this,” he added. In the process, Bercy confirmed that “a tripartite agreement” had been found between the State, Sanofi and the American fund CD&R for the sale of the products without a prescription, a subsidiary of the pharmaceutical group.
«It is positive that a public operator, such as Bpifrance, can participate. I believe it is a good option because it allows us to be on the board of directors, to be in the government to guarantee the maintenance of the conditions” requested by the government in this dossier, the minister responsible for the budget and public accounts, Laurent Saint, estimated yesterday. Martin. And how much will this capital increase in Opella cost public finances? Its amount and level of participation will be detailed during a press conference on Monday morning.
Employment commitments
For several days the government has been trying to reassure the future of the French sites of Opella and Doliprane by multiplying declarations on the written commitments requested from interested parties in terms of jobs and security of supply.
“We have achieved the highest possible level of guarantees in discussions” with Sanofi on this issue, the ministries of Economy and Industry announced on Sunday evening.
Having “a state representative on the board of directors” of Opella is an “additional control point” to monitor compliance with these commitments which are “associated with heavy financial sanctions,” they added. “Sanofi accepted high demands,” according to them.
These conditions include the “maintenance of employment” at the French Opella sites in Lisieux (Calvados) and Compiègne (Oise), at the headquarters and at the level of the research and development centers, recalled Laurent Saint-Martin, also supporting the control tool of foreign investments in France (IEF) made available to the State. “The issue of Doliprane is extremely strategic in a matter of health sovereignty. We must maintain domestic production and supply chains,” he stressed.
Employees are still not reassured
On Sunday evening, Bercy also announced that the State had obtained guarantees on investments. “It is undoubtedly the most precious guarantee,” he insisted in the office of Marc Ferracci, the new Industry Minister. This is decisive for the anchoring of the company in France”.
However, the tripartite agreement does not seem capable of reassuring employees. «We would have liked Bpi France to take back the shares of the American fund, and not Sanofi, so that the pension fund was in the minority. Unfortunately, it seems that this is not the case”, reacts Adrien Mekhnache, deputy central trade union delegate of the CFDT at the Compiègne site. The strike movement is therefore maintained at the two industrial sites, in Oise and Calvados, at the beginning of the week. “We will continue to put pressure on the government to implement the Montebourg decree.
#Sale #Doliprane #State #stake #Opella #markets #drug