NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company developing orphan therapeutics for rare gastrointestinal and endocrine disorders, has amended its license agreement with Amgen for royalties from sales of cinacalcet HCl (Sensipar/Mimpara).

Under the revised agreement, NPS will receive a one-time $25 million payment in July 2012 in exchange for its rights to receive royalties under the license agreement that are earned after December 31, 2018. The amendment also limits the royalty offset of the royalty advance that NPS received from Amgen in August 2011 to $8 million per quarter with royalties in excess of $8 million paid to NPS for the respective quarter, thereby extending the royalty advance repayment period. After the repayment of the royalty advance and a 9 per cent per annum discount factor on the outstanding balance, Amgen will resume paying NPS all royalties earned through December 31, 2018. As of June 30, 2012, NPS owed Amgen a balance of $92 million on the royalty advance.

"This agreement significantly accelerates our cash flow with at least $75 million of incremental cash expected through 2013," said Luke M. Beshar, executive vice president and chief financial officer. "These funds are expected to fully support the cash requirements to launch both Gattex and Natpara, and represent a critical step in our transition to a self-sustaining commercial-stage organization. This innovative transaction underscores our commitment to accessing capital at the lowest possible cost and in a manner that is in the best interests of our shareholders."