PRINCETON, N.J., March 29, 2011 — Covance Inc. (NYSE: CVD) announced today that it has launched a set of new chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) pharmaceutical development services that will include active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) development and supply, API characterization, preformulation, formulation, and regulatory submission. Additional capabilities will continue to be added over the coming months, allowing Covance to become a full CMC development service provider by year-end.

The addition of these services to the Covance portfolio follows the September 2010 agreement between Covance and sanofi-aventis, which included the transfer of staff and facilities at the sanofi-aventis sites in Alnwick, UK and Porcheville, France to Covance. As a result of this agreement, Covance has enhanced the CMC services it has provided for the past 20 years in Madison, Wis., US and Harrogate, UK.

“This expanded portfolio will allow us to be a stronger partner to our clients by providing stand-alone CMC services or integrated drug development packages,” said John Robson, Ph.D., President, Analytical Services, Covance. “We can now offer both large and small pharmaceutical companies access to top-five pharma CMC expertise and facilities.” 

About Covance
Covance, with headquarters in Princeton, New Jersey, is one of the world's largest and most comprehensive drug development services companies with annual revenues greater than $1.9 billion, global operations in more than 30 countries, and more than 10,000 employees worldwide. Information on Covance’s products and services, recent press releases, and SEC filings can be obtained through its website at http://www.covance.com.

Statements contained in this press release, which are not historical facts, such as statements about prospective earnings, savings, revenue, operations, revenue and earnings growth and other financial results are forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All such forward-looking statements including the statements contained herein regarding anticipated trends in the Company's business are based largely on management's expectations and are subject to and qualified by risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, competitive factors, outsourcing trends in the pharmaceutical industry, levels of industry research and development spending, the Company's ability to continue to attract and retain qualified personnel, the fixed price nature of contracts or the loss or delay of large studies, risks associated with acquisitions and investments, the Company's ability to increase order volume, the pace of translation of orders into revenue in late-stage development services, testing mix and geographic mix of kit receipts in central laboratories, fluctuations in currency exchange rates, and other factors described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The Company undertakes no duty to update any forward looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in the Company's expectations.