Celltrion and Thermo Fisher are reportedly vying to acquire the biopharma solutions unit of Baxter International.

According to Reuters, the sale could go up as high as $4 billion, which would help alleviate Baxter's debt burden. 

Baxter's debt is considerably high at $16.6 billion as of the end of December, which accounts for almost 90 percent of the company's market value of $19 billion.

The news agency further reported that private equity firms, including KKR & Co and Carlyle Group, have also expressed interest in the Baxter business, with the possibility of other bidders in the future.

The news comes after Baxter announced strategic actions to enhance operational effectiveness in January.

These changes included a plan to spin off the company's renal care and acute therapies global business units (GBUs) into an independent and publicly traded company and further portfolio actions to improve Baxter's capital structure, including a review of strategic alternatives for the biopharma solutions business.

"We are at a major inflection point in Baxter's ongoing transformation journey," Baxter International CEO and Chairman José E. Almeida said in January. "The healthcare landscape has never been more dynamic, and our learnings over the past year and beyond require a fundamental rethinking of our profile and operating model."

These decisive actions are necessary to help deliver future performance and innovation at the levels we demand of ourselves in pursuit of our mission to "Save and Sustain Lives," Almeida added.

In response to the news report, a Celltrion official told Korea Biomedical Review that the company has explored the possibility of acquiring the biopharma solutions business of Baxter International to create a global manufacturing facility but nothing has been finalized.

Celltrion has a long-standing relationship with Baxter, having outsourced the production of the world's first biosimilar, Remsima, in 2017. 

Acquiring Baxter's biopharma biz may provide Celltrion with a biopharmaceutical manufacturing and distribution network in the U.S., the world's largest market, observers said.

Baxter has more than 50 cGMP-certified manufacturing and sterile facilities worldwide, which will help Celltrion reduce the time and cost of building a plant and obtaining U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.

Officials from Baxter International Korea and Thermo Fisher Korea said they were unable to comment on the matter.

Meanwhile, Baxter's biopharma solutions unit partners with other pharmaceutical companies to support their commercialization objectives by providing scientific expertise, sterile contract manufacturing solutions, parenteral delivery systems, and customized support services needed to meet the unique challenges that parenteral products face.