(Alliance News) - Open Orphan PLC on Monday announced that Chief Executive Trevor Phillips will be standing down and said it has signed a new contract with a US biotechnology.
Shares in the pharmaceutical services firm were up 10% at 9.90 pence in London in afternoon trading.
Philips will stay in his role until June end but has departed the board with immediate effects. He joined hVIVO at the end of 2018 and led hVIVO's merger with Open Orphan. Executive Chair Cathal Friel will lead Open Orphan.
The new contract is for Open Orphan to provide a human challenge study in respiratory syncytial virus, a highly contagious viral disease and among the most common causes of pneumonia and bronchiolitis. Challenge studies purposefully expose healthy volunteers to an infectious disease.
The biotechnology company's name was not disclosed, though Open Orphan expects to receive around GBP3.5 million of revenue in 2020 from the study.
Open Orphan acquired Venn Life Sciences Holdings PLC in January, the same month its completed its merger with hVIVO PLC. The study will use the clinical research organisation services of hVIVO and Venn and will take place at hVIVO's London-based quarantine unit in the third quarter of 2020.
Friel said: "Firstly, I would like to thank Trevor for his help merging Open Orphan and hVIVO. Trevor had previously successfully right sized and focused hVIVO and our refreshed management team is now focused on delivering growth at a very exciting time for the company.
"The signing of this new GBP3.5 million contract with a US biotechnology company is further evidence of this exciting time as we successfully convert Open Orphan's pipeline of prospects into formal customer contracts. Open Orphan will be utilising its complementary in-house [clinical research organisation] services of hVIVO and Venn to deliver this contract. This contract demonstrates the Open Orphan and hVivo group's focus on building long term contracts with recurring revenues to deliver future profitability while ensuring rationalising the business and reduce costs."
By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com
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