Phillip Broadwith

Cambridge

Editor at Chemistry World

Business Editor for @chemistryworld, when I'm not dancing, cricketing or at the allotment. All opinions my own.

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Articles

The future of oil refining in the UK

1 week ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Can plants adapt to be compatible with a lower-carbon environment? Once Petroineos’s Grangemouth refinery closes this year, the UK will have five working oil refineries, down from a peak of 18 in the 1970s. As demand for fossil-derived fuels declines, and competition from abroad intensifies, that number seems set to fall further. The surviving plants will likely be those that are already moving toward cleaner, more efficient, and more sustainable operation.
Sanofi to buy Blueprint Medicines for over $9 billion

3 weeks ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Blueprint has one approved drug and enhances Sanofi’s immunology portfolio Source: © HJBC/Shutterstock As part of a strategy to strengthen its immunology segment through acquisitions, Sanofi has agreed to buy US-based Blueprint Medicines in a deal worth $9.1 billion (£6.7 billion) in cash, with an additional $400 million on offer in performance milestone payments.
Explosion and fire at Chinese chemical plant kills five

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Six others missing and 19 injured at Shandong Youdao Chemical Source: © Liang Ben/China News Service/VCG/Getty Images Five people have died and six others are missing after an explosion and fire at a chemical plant in Gaomi, China on 27 May. The incident at Shandong Youdao Chemical injured 19 other people, according to reports in the South China Morning Post. The cause of the incident is yet to be determined.
Ignoring women’s health shouldn’t be an option

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Developing therapies for conditions that predominantly affect women is an neglected, but enormous, opportunity Source: © SolStock/Getty Images Pharmaceutical and medical science has a massive knowledge gap around women’s health. As outlined in a special collection of Chemistry World articles, conditions that only affect women, or affect them very differently to men, have been systematically ignored or dismissed for most of medical history.
Rebuilding pharma supply chains

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Multinationals are promising huge US investments, but it’s not all because of Trump’s policies Source: © Extreme Media/Getty Images Donald Trump says he wants more of the medicines US patients use to be manufactured within the US. And to make that happen, he’s brandishing both stick and carrot.
At least 70 dead in Iran port explosion and fire

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

More than 1000 people injured after cargo caught fire and exploded Source: © Hessam oddin Ansarian/Getty Images A massive explosion and fire at the Iranian port of Shahid Rajaee has left at least 70 people dead and more than 1000 others injured. The blast occurred on the morning of 26 April, and was reportedly felt up to 50km away. The ensuing fire spread between cargo containers across large areas of the port. Fires continued to burn for several days, and clean-up operations are ongoing.
Iran port explosion highlights issues of shipping hazardous chemicals

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Intersecting regulations and jurisdictions mean rules can be accidentally or deliberately overlooked Source: © Mohammad Rasoul Moradi/Anadolu/Getty Images The deadly explosion and fire at the Iranian port of Shahid Rajaee is a stark reminder of the inherent risks of transporting large quantities of hazardous chemicals around the world. National and international regulations play a huge part in mitigating those risks.
Merck KGaA to buy cancer specialist SpringWorks

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

$3.9 billion deal boosts Merck’s pipeline as it faces patent expiries Source: © Anne Czichos/Shutterstock Germany’s Merck KGaA has agreed to buy SpringWorks Therapeutics, adding the US biotech’s portfolio of cancer and rare disease therapies to its pipeline. Merck will pay $47 per share of SpringWorks, making the deal worth $3.9 billion (£2.9 billion), or $3.4 billion accounting for SpringWorks’ outstanding cash and debt. SpringWorks has two drugs approved in the US.
Gilead settles US HIV drug kickback lawsuit

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

Firm will pay $202 million to federal and state governments Source: © Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Pharmaceutical firm Gilead has admitted paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal kickbacks to US doctors between January 2011 and November 2017, as inducements for prescribing the company’s HIV drugs.
Giving companies room to grow

2 months ago | chemistryworld.com | Phillip Broadwith

There is a chronic shortage of laboratory space for UK companies that are starting up and scaling up. It’s not a new problem, and it’s been holding back growth of innovative firms for years. Chemistry World’s Julia Robinson has been speaking to innovators about their experience attempting to scale up a business in the UK, as well as outlining some of the holes in the system and looking at potential solutions.