On Dec. 22, 2011, Baxter International and Momenta Pharmaceuticals entered into a global collaboration to develop and commercialize follow-on biologic products. Baxter will contribute its clinical-development and biologic-manufacturing expertise, experience with sterile injectables, and global commercial capabilities to the collaboration. Momenta will bring its expertise in high-resolution analytics, characterization, and product and process development to the joint effort.

Under the terms of the agreement, Baxter will make an up-front cash payment of $33 million to Momenta related to the collaboration for as many as six follow-on biologic compounds. Baxter may make additional payments during the next several years for the development of the compounds, depending on the achievement of technical, developmental, and regulatory milestones. Baxter and Momenta expect to close the transaction during the first quarter of 2012, subject to customary closing conditions.

“As biologics have become an increasingly important part of patient care, the collaboration with Momenta allows us to tap both companies’ expertise to expand access to these important therapies,” said Ludwig Hantson, president of Baxter’s BioScience business, in a press release. “The collaboration complements Baxter’s early-stage pipeline and allows the company to expand its leadership in biologics at a time when the global regulatory pathway for approval is becoming more clear.”

“Momenta and Baxter share a common goal in this collaboration—to create interchangeable biologic products by taking advantage of Momenta’s innovative physicochemical and biologic characterization capabilities, coupled with a quality-by-design approach to process development,” commented Craig Wheeler, president and CEO of Momenta, in the press release. “We are thrilled to have Baxter as a partner.”

The Baxter–Momenta collaboration is the latest of several similar agreements to be finalized this month. Last week, Amgen and Watson Pharmaceuticals agreed to jointly develop and commercialize several oncology antibody biosimilar medicines. On Dec. 8, 2011, Samsung and Biogen Idec invested $300 million to establish a joint venture to develop, manufacture, and market biosimilars.