Jul 27, 2012 10:08 AM

Celesio AG, a provider of logistics and services in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector, plans to sell its Movianto Group, which specializes in third-party logistics (3PL) for the pharmaceutical and medical device industries, to Owens & Minor Inc (NYSE - OMI).

With the pending divestiture of Movianto, Celesio is rapidly strengthening its focus on its core business. Owens & Minor intends to acquire Movianto for a purchase price of $158 million. The transaction is subject to fulfillment of certain customary local legal provisions. Owens & Minor, which has a US-based 3PL service but no European operations, plans to integrate the two businesses and keep the Movianto teams and logistics centers across Europe intact. Celesio and Owens & Minor also intend to explore mutually beneficial projects in distribution and logistics in the healthcare markets.

For Owens & Minor, the acquisition of Movianto will enable it to enter the European market with a broad 3PL platform. Owens & Minor intends to assume the customer relationships, logistics centers, and the 1,800 team members across the network of 23 facilities in 11 European nations. Its US-based 3PL service and Movianto share complementary services such as warehousing, transportation, and cold chain logistics. Owens & Minor’s 4,800 employees operate from 48 distribution centers across the United States. The company was founded in 1882 in Richmond VA and remains headquartered there.

Visit www.celesio.com or www.owens-minor.com for more information.