Lundbeck reorganises European operations

Lundbeck has split its European activities into two regional units and appointed João Rocha and Michael Quiqueran-Beajeu to lead them.

The Danish pharma company has promoted Rocha from country manager in Brazil and regional vice president for Latin America to vice president of its new Region West unit.

Prior to joining Lundbeck he served with Merck and Schering-Plough and in his new role will have responsibility for Lundbeck's commercial activities in the majority of Western European countries.

Meanwhile Quingueran-Beajeuwill joins Lundbeck from Genzyme, where he was senior vice president and general manager for Northern Europe. He has more than 20 years of experience in the European pharmaceutical industry and previously worked for companies such as Sandoz and Roche.

He will now lead Lundbeck's operations in Eastern Europe as well as Turkey and Russia.

"Europe is still Lundbeck's largest market, and with our growing drug portfolio and several new launches in the near future, it is important that we consolidate and strengthen our European organisation," said Marie-Laure Pochon, Lundbeck's executive vice president for commercial operations.

"With our new structure and the appointment of João Rocha and Michael Quiqueran-Beaujeu, who both bring with them many years of experience and impressive results, I am convinced that we have a set-up that gives us the optimal conditions for success in developing and expanding the Lundbeck business."

New products on the horizon include the company's alcohol dependence treatment Selincro (nalmefene), which was filed for European approval in December.

And earlier this year Lundbeck launched its antipsychotic Sycrest (asenapine) in UK, following its EU debut in Denmark last year.

Europe accounts for 50 per cent of Lundbeck's revenue, which last year rose two per cent to DKK 8bn (€1.1bn) in 2011.