Durham-based Chimerix (Nasdaq: CMRX) could earn as much as $435 million under a federal contract for its smallpox drug if a 5-year contract is awarded as expected, the firm said Monday.
In its latest earnings report, Chimerix included a notice about the contract, which would be with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.
The contract could be signed as soon as September and would be worth at least $100 million, Chimerix said. If all contract options were exercised, the value would climb.
Chimerix, which also had been at the forefront of Ebola vaccine work before pulling back recently, reported a quarterly loss of $21.6 million.
The contract notice reads as follows:
Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) Posted a Notice of Intent to Award a Sole Source Contract to Chimerix for the Procurement of Brincidofovir for Smallpox
In April 2015, BARDA announced its intent to award a procurement contract to the company and stated that it anticipates announcing the award of this contract by the end of September 2015. According to the posted notice of intent, the estimated period of performance for the 60-month base period is September 2015 through August 2020 for initial deliveries of brincidofovir to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS). Options may be exercised at BARDA’s discretion to achieve the potential delivery of a maximum of 1.7 million treatment courses. BARDA’s total estimated dollar value for the 60-month base period contract is approximately $100 million. If all options are exercised by BARDA, the total dollar value is estimated to be approximately $435 million. Any award would be subject to negotiation and execution of a definitive agreement by the parties.
