EQiTX sets itself up for biotechnology

A Western Australian oil and metal exploration company has gathered some of the top names in Australian science as it moves towards rebirth as a biotech.

In the past two weeks EQiTX (ASX: EQX) has appointed a new chief executive officer and business development executive, and has signed a memorandum of understanding tapping into Japanese biomedical projects.

Corporate consultant Brian Nathanson said the company was also currently conducting due diligence on two biotech projects.

Nathanson, who previously was the CEO of Meditech (ASX: MTR) before retiring last year, said he was looking for a similar challenge when he spotted EQiTX.

Describing the company as an old, defunct oil explorer in desperate need of funds, Nathanson said he put in $850,000 -- about half the amount required from EQiTX's aborted share issue last year.

When the existing board resigned, Nathanson went about gathering such people as Prof Mark von Itzstein, who was involved in the design and synthesis of anti-flu drug Relenza, and now heads Griffith University's Centre for Biomolecular Science and Drug Discovery.

Also advising the company are Curtin University director of research and development Dr Barney Glover, Murdoch University research and development director Dr Paul D'sylva and the managing director of commercialisation company TechStart Australia, Conrad Crisafulli.

On July 1, former Biotron managing director Dr Noel Chambers was named EQiTX CEO, and this week Dr Julie-Ann White - a scientist with 10 years experience in European start-ups and multinationals - was appointed business development executive.

"At the end of the day, because of the group of people involved, we have a conduit to projects that the average company would not have a conduit to, and excellent people to take advantage of that," Nathanson said.

"It won't be very long before we will be announcing the first few projects."

A significant step towards EQiTX's new incarnation was the memorandum of understanding signed with Japanese venture capital company, Biotech-Healthcare Partners, which is backed by the Japanese government.

The MoU covers future identification of and joint investment in biomedical projects, particularly related to drug discovery and delivery, diagnostics and devices, tissue engineering and healthcare products.

Accessing a range of technologies Nathanson said the agreement was an opportunity for EQiTX to gain access to a range of technologies and developments through Biotech-Healthcare's network in Japanese research institutions and centres.

He said Chambers, who planned to relocate to Perth, was about to embark on an eastern seaboard mission to identify potential projects for the company.

Nathanson said the company had initially kept a broad brief of the types of projects it would be interested in, looking at opportunities ranging from cancer treatments to migraine.

But he said that since the appointment of Chambers, the field had been narrowed to therapeutics, diagnostics and veterinary, the latter of which would likely be spun out into a separate company.

EQiTX, which listed as a mining company in 1987, reported a consolidated after tax loss of more than $700,000 in the year to December, 2001 - about five times greater than in the previous year.

Nathanson said it currently had 3500 shareholders and a market capitalisation of $3.6 million.

He said the company still held its mining interests, including a Western Siberian oilfield, but intended to offload those within the calendar year.

EQiTX shares are current trading at 23 cents.