CSPC Pharmaceutical Group (01093) announced that it has signed a strategic research and development cooperation and licensing agreement with AstraZeneca, a global leader in biopharmaceuticals, to develop innovative long-acting peptide drugs. According to the agreement, CSPC will receive an upfront payment of US$1.2 billion and is entitled to potential R&D milestone payments of up to US$3.5 billion, potential sales milestone payments of up to US$13.8 billion, and sales royalties based on up to double-digit percentages of the annual net sales of the relevant products, with a potential total transaction value of up to US$18.5 billion.

　　Under the terms of the agreement, the two parties will engage in comprehensive strategic cooperation in the discovery of innovative peptide molecules and the development of long-acting delivery products. CSPC Pharmaceutical Group will grant AstraZeneca exclusive rights globally (excluding Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the relevant licensed products, while retaining its rights to these products in the aforementioned regions. Specifically, AstraZeneca will obtain global exclusive rights to CSPC Pharmaceutical Group's portfolio of once-monthly injectable weight management products, including a clinically ready project SYH2082 and three preclinical projects. The two parties will also collaborate on four additional projects.

　　According to the announcement, this collaboration will utilize CSPC Pharmaceutical Group's proprietary sustained-release drug delivery technology platform and peptide drug AI discovery platform. The company's long-acting technology enables sustained release of peptide drugs, allowing for dosing intervals of once a month or longer, while its peptide drug AI discovery platform can rapidly design and optimize candidate molecules targeting drug targets.