(Yicai) Aug. 28 -- Chinese drugmaker CanSino Biologics said it plans to spend MYR8.6 million (USD1.9 million) to acquire 10 percent of Malaysian biological investment firm Solution Group, the parent company of its local partner Solution Biologics Sendirian.

A Hong Kong-based unit of CanSino will subscribe for almost 44 million new shares of Solution for 19.5 Malaysian cents (4.2 US cents) apiece as part of a deal the Tianjin-based firm signed with Solution Biologics and the National Institutes of Biotechnology Malaysia, CanSino said yesterday. The stock will be bought in stages at a fixed price, it added.

The deal will help deepen the partnership between CanSino and Solution Biologics on vaccine development, advanced manufacturing, and market commercialization after a successful tie-up on the production and distribution of Covid-19 vaccines in Malaysia, the Chinese firm noted.

Solution Biologics is the first biopharmaceutical company in Malaysia to own vaccine production equipment that meet BioSafety Level 2 specifications.

CanSino’s Shanghai-listed shares [SHA: 688185] closed 0.9 percent down at CNY70.21 (USD9.63) today. In Hong Kong, its shares [HKG: 6185] fell 1.9 percent to HKD23.50 (USD3).

Editor: Futura Costaglione