Hovione in New Jersey awarded VPP Star status by OSHA

Loures, Portugal, October 8, 2007 – Hovione announces that its Technology Transfer Centre (TTC) has been accepted for Star participation to the Voluntary Protection Program by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration – OSHA. The VPP Star plaque and Flag presentation ceremony will take place next 11th October in East Windsor, New Jersey at 3pm.

At present, only 44 sites in New Jersey have obtained the VPP Star designation. Just to apply, the facilities need to have a minimum of 3 years of unblemished track record. The TTC started operations in 2001 and OSHA accepted our application less than 12 months after it was first submitted. This shows the commitment to worker safety and health that has existed at the TTC since its inception.

Guy Villax, Hovione CEO said: “I am very proud of the achievement of my colleagues. This award takes our TTC to the next level, it is a status that the Team in New Jersey will have to work hard to maintain. Continuing to deserve this is central to building our company culture. Safe operations are the result of good management and dedicated people. This is what gets customers to come back for more. I think it is terrific that, just like all our other sites, the TTC in New Jersey continues the Hovione tradition of collecting awards for doing important things well - well done!”.

Working with industry and labor, the federal Occupational Safety & Health Administration created the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) in 1980 to recognize and partner with worksites that implement exceptional systems to manage worker safety and health. The management and employees at these sites voluntarily implement comprehensive safety & health management systems - that go far beyond basic compliance with OSHA regulations.

The VPP process emphasizes holding managers accountable for worker safety & health through measurable goals, the continual identification and elimination of hazards and the active involvement of employees in their own protection. The process places significant reliance on the cooperation and trust inherent in a partnership. Sites choosing to apply for VPP recognition show their commitment to effective worker protection by inviting government regulators into their workplace. In return, OSHA removes them from programmed inspections and does not issue citations for violations that are promptly corrected.

Hovione is an international group specializing in the development and compliant production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), serving exclusively the pharmaceutical industry. With FDA inspected plants in Europe and the Far East and a Technology Transfer Center in New Jersey, Hovione is committed to the highest levels of service and quality. Specializing in complex chemistry, Hovione offers services related to the development and manufacture of either a new chemical entity (NCE) for an exclusive contract manufacturing partner or an existing API for an off-patent product.

For further information about Hovione, please visit the Hovione site at www.hovione.com or contact Corporate Communications (Isabel Pina, + 351 21 982 9362, e-mail: )

PR 2007/004