Three years after purchasing Vectura Group in a deal valued at over £1 billion, Philip Morris International (PMI) sold the company for £150 million ($198 million).
The purchase of Vectura, a company that manufactures inhalers to treat respiratory ailments including asthma, by PMI drew criticism for its perceived hypocrisy.
As part of its plan to shift away from cigarettes and into “smoke free” industries like vaping, PMI did, however, justify the decision.
On Wednesday, PMI revealed the deal, stating that Vectura now freed “from the unreasonable burden of external constraints and criticism related to our ownership.” The sale was made to the electronics company Molex Asia Holdings.
Molex will pay an upfront payment of £150 million as part of the deal, which is still pending regulatory approval. If certain conditions are met, there might be “potential deferred payments of up to £148 million.”
Jacek Olczak, the CEO of PMI, added that the company is still “committed to driving innovation in this space over the long term,” implying that it hasn’t given up on the inhaler market completely.
A component of PMI’s effort to create a “smoke-free world” was the acquisition of Vectura. By 2030, PMI intends non-cigarette sales to account for two-thirds of its total sales.
Health charities, on the other hand, have expressed doubts about PMI’s commitment given the billions of pounds the company still makes from the sale of cigarettes.
