BERLIN, July 3 (Reuters) – BioNTech has held confidential talks with potential buyers about German sites that the COVID‑19 vaccine maker plans to close, the Handelsblatt newspaper reported on Friday.
The German company said in May it would close three sites in Germany — Idar-Oberstein, Marburg and Tuebingen — by the end of 2027, and also end operations in Singapore by the first quarter of next year, affecting up to 1,860 jobs.
BioNTech also said it would exit its Berlin-based subsidiary JPT Peptide by the end of this year, affecting roughly 140 positions.
JPT Peptides, which BioNTech acquired in 2009, is no longer profitable and BioNtech has already started looking for a new peptide supplier, Handelsblatt reported, citing people familiar with the discussions.
BioNTech does not comment on potential or ongoing discussions as a matter of principle, a spokesperson said.
JPT Peptides did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
(Writing by Miranda Murray. Editing by Lincoln Feast and Mark Potter)
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