rongsheng biotech made in china

SHANGHAI, Oct 30 (Reuters) - China Rongsheng, the country’s largest private shipbuilder, has secured a cash lifeline that could be worth up to HK$3.23 billion dollars and is looking to change its name to reflect its shift into oil exploration.

Shares in heavily indebted Rongsheng, which were suspended on Aug. 29 after the company said it was in the process of restructuring, surged almost 17 percent higher after trading resumed on Thursday. They reversed gains, and were down 3.7 pct by 0217 GMT.

Rongsheng said late on Wednesday it would issue warrants worth HK$510 million to a Cayman Islands-incorporated investment firm wholly owned by private equity investor Wang Ping, which would entitle subscribers to buy up to 1.7 billion new shares at HK$1.60 each.

This would raise about HK$3.23 billion for Rongsheng, it said. A warrant entitles the holder to buy stock from the issuer at a specific price within a time frame.

The price of the new shares is at a 17.65 percent premium to Rongsheng’s closing price of HK$1.36 per share on Aug. 28, when it last previously traded. It said the subscription shares represent 19.36 percent of the firm’s issued share capital.

Rongsheng, which builds Brazilian miner’s Vale mega-iron ore carriers, came close to insolvency last year before clinching an agreement with banks to extend its loans until end-2015.

As one of the Jiangsu region’s largest employers, the firm has received copious support from the government, which is currently helping Rongsheng with its restructuring.

Rongsheng also said it had signed a debt agreement with a syndicate of domestic banks in Anhui province that would extend its debt payments to the end of 2015.

Rongsheng has been one of the most prolific casualties of the global shipping slump. The industry is still trying to shake off a glut of ships ordered before the crisis which has sunk freight rates and caused many shipbuilding orders to be delayed or cancelled. ($1 = 7.7552 Hong Kong dollar) ($1 = 6.1136 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Brenda Goh; Editing by Miral Fahmy)

There are over 1,400 employees in the institute, 54% of which are scientific and technical personnel. In 2001, the concerned central government departments granted approval for the CDIBP to effectively buy shares of the Chengdu Rongsheng Pharmaceuticals Co Ltd with its blood product production line to become the principal shareholder of Rongsheng.

"China"s biopharmaceutical industry is now embracing strong development opportunities," said Lifeng Wang, CEO of China National Biotech Group (CNBG) at the First International China Biopharmaceutical Symposium (ICBPS) that was held in Beijing in December 2006. "Chinese biopharma enterprises are looking forward to more collaboration with the world"s leading biopharma institutions and companies. We expect to achieve a win-win situation with our global partners. The Chinese biopharmaceutical industry is ready to make significant contributions to global disease prevention and healthcare," she added.

In addition to producing a variety of biogenerics to supply its domestic market, China has succeeded in developing and commercializing several innovative biotech drugs and vaccines. Some research-oriented Chinese biopharmaceutical companies such as Shanghai Sunway Biotech, Yantai Medgenn, and Beijing Biotech Pharma have developed a handful of novel protein therapeutic drugs. These companies have won grants from the National 863 Program, a Chinese government-sponsored technology support program that has funded the R&D of more than 300 new biotech drugs across the country. Beijing Biotech Pharma has attracted foreign investment from a variety of sources, including Cuba, but it has yet to see substantial market penetration for its key product—hR3 MAb.

In many countries, government support is one of the most important forces fueling biotech development. The Chinese government emphasizes the biopharmaceutical industry in the 11th Five-Year Plan period. China"s National Medium-and Long-Term Science and Technology Development Plan Outline (2006–2020) indicates that in the next 15 years, China will deploy a series of cutting-edge technologies in the biotechnology sector. These include target discoverY; animal and plant species and drug molecular design; gene operation and protein engineering; human tissue engineering based on stem cells; and a new generation of industrial biotechnology. The government also will increase investment in the biopharmaceutical sectors.

China"s State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) is modifying policies to encourage innovation and restrict imitation. It is also issuing policies to encourage biopharmaceutical outsourcing. Moreover, the country is on the way to establishing an effective VC system to attract foreign venture capital in the biotech sector.

Chinese biopharmaceutical companies are forming strategic alliances to enhance their overall strength. For example, China"s biopharma giant, CNBG, was formed by merging six major biological product institutes in Beijing, Shanghai, Changchun, Wuhan, Lanzhou, and Chengdu with two biopharma manufacturers (Beijing Tiantan and Chengdu Rongsheng). The resulting organization employs 10,000 people across China. On the other hand, small-to-medium sized biotech companies with one or two new products are collaborating with big companies with strong financial, facilities, and sales network support.