The State is working to prevent the Sanofi file from becoming explosive. The Minister of the Economy Antoine Armand and his counterpart in Industry, Marc Ferracci, were this Monday, October 14, on the site of the pharmaceutical giant which produces Doliprane in Lisieux (Calvados), to hear the concerns of employees and unions faced with the expected arrival of a new American shareholder.
The French pharmaceutical group announced at the end of last week that it had chosen the American investment fund CD&R to potentially cede control of its consumer health entity, Opella, which markets the consumer drug Doliprane. Since then, the unions and a large part of the political class have been concerned about the consequences of such a sale for health sovereignty and the 250 jobs on the site.
Marc Ferracci and Antoine Armand were able to visit the Lisieux factory this Monday and interact with the staff. The future of Doliprane also mobilized the mayor of Lisieux and several parliamentarians, around thirty people, including trade unionists.
“A bit like a betrayal”
The option of an American buyer is seen “a bit like a betrayal towards France and towards all employees”, said Johann Nicolas, CGT Lisieux union representative. “Our first request is to stay Sanofi!” he said, according to an AFP correspondent.
“We have started discussions with Sanofi and with Opella” regarding “the conditions which would be essential and a formalized agreement which must take place and will take place if the transfer project arrives on the table”, warned Antoine Armand during a microphone handed to the press. “These guarantees must be respected and we will ensure that they are by mobilizing all the legislative and regulatory tools at our disposal, including penalties and sanctions in the event of non-compliance with the agreement,” he added. . He also mentioned “the possibility of public shareholding and participation in governance within the framework of this agreement”.
Among the obligations required by the government: the Minister for Industry, Marc Ferracci, cites “the maintenance of the industrial footprint and industrial employment” on the French production sites of Lisieux and Compiègne (Oise). It is also a question, according to him, of “commitments on production volumes” and “on research and development” as well as the preservation of the “ecosystem of subcontractors”.
“We completely agree with the positions taken by politicians who talk about health sovereignty,” Humberto de Sousa, a CFDT trade unionist who now expects “these commitments to translate into action,” told AFP. But “we don’t know if the commitments will hold if the board of directors switches to the American side”, he is wary, showing concern for jobs in the face of “the search for profitability of this buyer fund”.
Questioned on the sidelines of a trip to the Paris Motor Show, Emmanuel Macron affirmed for his part that the government had “the instruments to guarantee that France is protected” in the face of the arrival of a foreign investor.
“Not in a logic of myopia”
Vigilance remains essential because the supply of paracetamol has recently experienced periods of tension. Sanofi has repeatedly sought to dispel doubts by insisting that this split project would allow “the creation of a new world champion, the only one based in France, in the consumer health sector”.
Opella employs 1,700 people in France. Doliprane is its second brand in terms of revenue, France only represents around 10% of the sales of this entity which achieved 5.2 billion euros in turnover in 2023. This is ” a growth project which will leave its full place to Doliprane, both in our pharmacies and in our factories”, repeated in Lisieux, the chairman of the board of directors of Sanofi, Frédéric Oudéa.
“We will not be short-sighted. We will look far and we will protect the Lisieux site like the Compiègne site,” he assured. “Sanofi wishes to be associated with this project, since we keep 50% of the capital. It is not a dry sale,” he added. In the battle for Doliprane, the CD & R fund was in competition with an offer led by the French investment fund PAI Partners backed by international investors.