WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass., Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Boston Biomedica, Inc. (Nasdaq: BBII) today announced that it has received an investment of $1,500,000 from a group of five individuals led by Mr. Richard P. Kiphart, an existing, major shareholder. The investment involved the sale by the Company of 600,000 shares of restricted Common Stock at $2.50 per share. The share price was based on a 10% discount from the average closing price of the Company's stock over the 10 days prior to the consummation of the transaction. There were no warrants, registration rights, or other benefits offered to the investors.
"Our initial investment in Boston Biomedica was made more than three years ago, following extensive research on many companies," commented Richard P. Kiphart. "At that time, we chose to invest in BBI because we believed their worldwide business in infectious disease quality control offered a solid measure of financial safety, stability and growth potential, while their programs in anti-HIV drug discovery and Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT) offered exciting possibilities for rapid growth. They have made significant progress in all three areas since we first became shareholders, particularly over the past 12 months. With that progress and with the release of the first commercial PCT product scheduled for next year, we are very pleased to have the opportunity to increase our investment in BBI."
Richard T. Schumacher, Founder, CEO, and Chairman of Boston Biomedica, commented: "We have been successful during 2001 in funding the majority of our efforts in both our infectious disease quality control business and PCT from operating cash flow. We have no significant (non-mortgage) debt, we have cash in the bank, and we remain on track to release our PCT Sample Preparation System by the middle of 2002. This additional cash strengthens our financial position, and will help ensure that sufficient funds will be available prior to and during the expected launch of our first PCT product. We are especially pleased with the confidence in BBI that Mr. Kiphart and his group demonstrate with this investment."
Boston Biomedica, Inc. provides products and services for the detection and monitoring of infectious diseases such as AIDS and Viral Hepatitis. BBI has three operating business units: (1) BBI Diagnostics, an ISO 9001 certified manufacturer and supplier of quality control and diagnostics reagents used to increase the accuracy of in vitro diagnostic tests, (2) BBI Biotech Research Laboratories, a research and development center providing R&D support for the other BBI business units, as well as contract research and repository services for the government, industry and other third parties, and (3) BBI Source Scientific, an ISO 9001 certified manufacturer of diagnostic instrumentation and medical devices. In addition, BBI is conducting research and development in Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT) through its subsidiary BBI BioSeq, with the goal of introducing new solutions for a number of important healthcare issues, including: inactivation of pathogens in human plasma, extraction of nucleic acids, food safety, and genomics. BBI also maintains a passive investment in Panacos Pharmaceuticals, a privately held antiviral drug and vaccine development company recently spun-off from BBI, whose goal is to introduce new solutions for the treatment of infectious diseases.
Statements contained in this news release that state the Company's or management's intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future are "forward-looking" statements. It is important to note that the Company's actual results could differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from those projected include the possibility that due to unforeseen additional costs, changes in consumer demand or delays in the commercialization of PCT products, BBI may not have sufficient operating cash flow and existing cash to continue to operate its business as presently conducted without additional equity capital. Further, due to difficulties in the development of the technology, BBI may not be successful in launching the PCT Sample Preparation System in mid-2002 as expected, or ever; that Pressure Cycling Technology may not be adaptable to any other commercially viable applications; that certain pressure cycling applications may not fall within the claims of the Company's eight issued patents; and that individuals and groups utilizing such PCT procedures may not be required to license such technology from BBI. Additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements is contained from time to time in the Company's SEC filings, including but not limited to the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K (as amended) for the year ended December 31, 2000, Current Report on Form 8-K filed March 8, 2001, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2001, June 30, 2001, and September 30, 2001, and in the Company's Registration Statements on Form S-3 (Reg. No. 333-46426 and Reg. No. 333-94379). Copies of these documents may be obtained by contacting the Company or the SEC.
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SOURCE Boston Biomedica, Inc.
Web site: http: //www.bbii.com
CONTACT: Richard T. Schumacher, CEO & Chairman, or Kevin W. Quinlan, President & COO, of Boston Biomedica, +1-508-580-1900
