Hemispherx Enters into Sale/Leaseback Agreement for NJ Development and Production Facility

ORLANDO, Fla., Jan. 17, 2018 -- Hemispherx Biopharma, Inc. (NYSE American:HEB), focused on pharmaceutical research, today said it has entered into a sale and leaseback agreement for the property it owns at 783 Jersey Lane, New Brunswick, NJ., which houses the company’s development and production facilities.

Under the terms of the agreement, Hemispherx is selling the real estate for $4.0 million, and simultaneously entering into a 10-year lease with options to extend the lease for another 10-years. The company will retain the right to repurchase the property at any time during the initial lease. The facility’s lease payments under the agreement are offset by about 50% by the contemporaneous termination of the very expensive lease on its Philadelphia offices. The combination of these transactions raises cash for operations with only a modest increase in the burn rate.

“This is a timely transaction for Hemispherx on favorable terms. It allows us to increase our production capabilities for Ampligen® to meet existing demands and projected higher requirements during the balance of this year and beyond,” said Thomas K. Equels, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. 

Hemispherx is in the final stages of producing commercial lots which are needed to launch Ampligen® in Argentina, where it is the first and only drug ever approved anywhere in the world as a therapy for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, commonly known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or ME/CFS. Increased production is important to allow clinical activities in both ME/CFS and oncology to move forward in the U.S. Furthermore, Ampligen production is key to Early Access Programs in Europe and planned programs in Canada.

“Hemispherx commitment to success is unwavering and converting wholly owned real estate into cash for operations and drug production without a dramatic increase in the burn rate is just a part of our overall financial plan,” states Equels, “We must remember that Ampligen stands as a potentially powerful mediator for dire unmet medical needs. We cannot serve those in need if we do not take the important financial steps necessary to manufacture Ampligen in sufficient quantities to allow it to gain regulatory approvals in major markets.”

About Hemispherx Biopharma
Hemispherx Biopharma, Inc. is an advanced specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the clinical development of new drug entities for treatment of seriously debilitating disorders. Hemispherx’s flagship products include Alferon N Injection® and the experimental therapeutic rintatolimod (tradenames Ampligen® or Rintamod®). Rintatolimod is an experimental RNA nucleic acid being developed for globally important debilitating diseases and disorders of the immune system, including Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Hemispherx’s platform technology includes components for potential treatment of various severely debilitating and life threatening diseases. Because rintatolimod is experimental in nature, it is not designated safe and effective by the FDA for general use and is legally available only through clinical trials.

Cautionary Statement
Some of the statements included in this press release may be forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. For those statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any forward-looking statements set forth in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. We do not undertake to update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date hereof. This press release and prior releases are available at www.hemispherx.net. The information found on our website is not incorporated by reference into this press release and is included for reference purposes only.

Contact
Hemispherx Biopharma
Phone Number: 800-778-4042
Email: [email protected]