Akorn, a Lake Forest, Ill.-based generics company, has agreed to acquire certain assets of Kilitch Drugs (India) Ltd. and NBZ Pharma Ltd. for as much as $58 million. Akorn will pay $52 million up front in cash and pony up a further $6 million if it hits certain milestones and financial targets.

Through the deal, Akorn will pick up five manufacturing sites: two completed plants and three more that are under construction and are expected to be operational in 2012. One of the completed plants manufactures general injectables and is being expanded to produce ophthalmic products. The other plant produces cephalosporins, a type of antibiotic, in various forms. The three under construction will make oncology-related injectables and antibiotics.

Akorn expects the deal to close in roughly 90 days. Akorn expects the deal to be accretive to its 2012 earnings per share before certain expenses and integration costs. For Akorn, the move is an expansion play that gives it access to the growing Indian pharmaceutical market. The combined company will have 25 pending product applications in more than 25 countries and now has greater capacity to produce sterile injectables. And CEO Raj Rai noted in a statement that the deal gives Akorn a "global footprint," access to emerging markets and the "roadmap" to becoming a big player in the market for generic injectables.

Akorn currently has manufacturing facilities in Decatur, Ill., and Somerset, N.J., where it produces ophthalmic drugs and injectable pharmaceuticals. Among its products are Akten (an ocular anesthetic gel), IC-Green (a dye used in medical diagnostics) and Paremyd (eye drops).

The company brought in $21.82 million in net income on $86.41 million in revenue in 2010, marking the first time it didn't post a net loss in a decade, according to regulatory filings. Akorn suffered a $25.31 million loss on $75.89 million in revenue a year prior.

The deal is the second Akorn has carried out since Aug. 2, when it paid an undisclosed sum for a minority stake in Westborough, Mass., ophthalmic drug development company Aciex Therapeutics Inc.

Khatian & Co. was Akorn's legal counsel, while PricewaterhouseCoopers Pvt. Ltd., India, provided financial due diligence.