Stason Pharmaceuticals to market Unilife's Unitract 1mL safety syringe in Japan, China and Taiwan

Unilife Corporation ("Unilife" or "Company") (Nasdaq: UNIS; ASX: UNS) today announced that it has signed an exclusive five-year agreement with Stason Pharmaceuticals Inc ("Stason"), a U.S.-based pharmaceutical company, to market the Unitract™ 1mL safety syringe ("Product") in Japan, China and Taiwan ("designated territories"). Stason's Taiwan-based strategic alliance affiliate, Standard Chem. and Pharm. Co., LTD ("Standard"), will act as the primary distributor of the product within these designated territories.

This agreement includes a requirement for Stason to purchase a minimum of one million units of the Unitract™ 1mL syringe per year during the term of the contract (subject to annual review). Stason is placing an immediate annual order with Unilife for the purchase of one million units of the Unitract™ 1mL syringe. Other countries within South-East Asia may be added to the list of designated territories where Stason has exclusive rights to sell the Product if the parties reach agreement on minimum orders for those countries.

Stason CEO Harry Fan stated: "We believe strongly in the market for the Unitract™ safety syringe and its potential to help decrease needlestick injuries around the world.  We are excited to be one of the first distributors of this revolutionary device and to have the opportunity to exclusively distribute the Unitract™ syringe to our customers in Asia. In particular, we believe there are significant opportunities for pharmaceutical companies to gain a competitive market advantage by supplying their injectable drugs in kits containing the drug vial and units of the Unitract™ 1mL Syringe."

Stason Vice President, Corporate Development Diana Wood, added: "This strategic alliance with Unilife also represents our joint vision where drugs and devices come together to deliver medications more comfortably to patients and more safely for hospital staff."

Unilife CEO Alan Shortall stated: "With manufacturing of our Unitract™ 1mL syringes underway at our FDA-certified facility in Pennsylvania, we are excited to move forward with this initial distribution agreement and initial order for one million Unitract™ safety syringes with Stason Pharmaceuticals and Standard Chem. and Pharma.  We believe there is a significant market opportunity for our safety syringes throughout the Asia-Pacific region, especially within fast-growing nations where there is both an appreciation for innovative US-manufactured technology and a desire to use premium safety medical devices which can minimize the transmission of blood-borne pathogens such as HIV and hepatitis C within healthcare facilities.

"We look forward to working closely with Stason and Standard to develop these markets and secure sustained rates of growth for the sale of our products across Asia. We are also continuing to negotiate with other pharmaceutical and healthcare companies across the world for distribution rights for the Unitract™ 1mL syringes. We expect that additional agreements will be signed in conjunction with the continued global rollout of the Unitract™ 1mL syringes," Mr. Shortall said.

The Unitract™ range of 1mL syringes is the world's first and only known syringe that allows operators to control the speed of automatic needle retraction directly from the patient's body into the barrel of the syringe where it is locked in place. The products are well positioned to help prevent the transmission of blood-borne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C via aerosol dispersal, needlestick injuries and syringe reuse. Primary target markets of the products include healthcare facilities, pharmaceutical companies and patients who self-administer prescription medication.

Also, while Unilife continues to have a relationship with Shanghai Kindly Enterprise Development Group Company Ltd ("KDL") for the assembly of its Unitract™ 1mL syringes within China on a per order basis, other agreements between Unilife and KDL relating to the distribution of the product within China and other agreed territories have expired. Stason has advised the Company of a preference to receive units of the Unitract™ 1mL syringe that are assembled at Unilife's FDA-registered facilities in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania.

SOURCE Unilife Corporation