PYROSEQUENCING ACQUIRES US BIOTAGE

PYROSEQUENCING ACQUIRES US BIOTAGE Uppsala Sweden 14 October 2003 - Pyrosequencing AB (Stockholm PYROA) announces that the Company has entered into an agreement with Dyax Corp. ("Dyax") to acquire Biotage LLC ("Biotage"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dyax for approximately $ 35 million in cash. The Company plans to take over mortgage on Biotage's newly built premises in Virginia, which will reduce the purchase price to approximately $ 30 million. Through the acquisition, the product line Medicinal Chemistry will be strengthened with a supplementary product portfolio of purification and separation systems. Increased turnover and substantial operational synergies enhance the possibility for Pyrosequencing to reach profitability faster. - The acquisition of Biotage is an important step in the consolidation phase we initiated at the beginning of the fall. Through the acquisition we create a solid base in the US, our single largest market. As the customers for Biotage and our product line Medicinal Chemistry are the same, we foresee significant operational synergies. Additionally we estimate the annual cost synergies to amount to approximately $ 4 million," says Pyrosequencing's Chairman and CEO Jeff Bork. Biotage is a market leader within small-molecule drug discovery purification and separation systems. The company reported net sales of $ 23.2 million in 2002. The company has 126 employees. Pyrosequencing recently acquired Personal Chemistry. After the merger, the new company has two product lines; Genomics and Medicinal Chemistry. Pro forma 2002 the company reported net sales of 202 MSEK. Pyrosequencing will have approximately 150 employees after the recently announced cutbacks. Customary mutual legal and financial due diligence is completed. After estimated completion of the acquisition by the end of October, Pyrosequencing will control 100% of the shares in Biotage. Income Pyrosequen- Biotage "Newco" Pyrosequen- Biotage "Newco" statement cing Jan-Dec Jan-Dec cing Jan-June Jan-June MSEK Jan-Dec2002 2002 2002 Jan-June2003 2003 2003 Pro forma Pro forma Net sales 202 225 427 72 87 159 Cost of -72 -98 -170 -29 -38 -67 goods sold Gross Profit 130 128 258 43 49 92 Other oper. -415 -130 -545 -185 -57 -242 Expenditures Restructuring -11 0 -11 -6 0 -6 costs Operating -296 -2 -298 -149 -8 -157 income About Pyrosequencing Pyrosequencing aims to accelerate the drug discovery and development process by providing complete solutions for applied genetic analysis and medicinal chemistry research. Through its merger with Personal Chemistry the Company has further strengthened its customer base of commercial and academic partners, which include the world's top 20 pharmaceutical companies and prestigious academic institutes such as the US National Institutes of Health, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Sweden's Karolinska Institute. Headquartered in Uppsala, Sweden, Pyrosequencing has facilities in Boston, USA, Cambridge, UK and Constance, Germany. The Company will have approximately 150 employees and had net sales of MSEK 202 in 2002. The Company is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. For more information visit www.pyrosequencing.com About Biotage Biotage, LLC., a wholly-owed subsidiary of Dyax Corp. (Nasdaq: DYAX) of Cambridge, MA, is a global industry leader in small-molecule drug discovery purification systems and consumables for the pharmaceutical industry. Its worldwide headquarters are located in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA with offices in Canada, England, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan. For additional information, visit www.biotage.com. Further information: Jeff Bork Chairman and CEO of Pyrosequencing jeff.bork@pyrosequencing.com +46 734-22 16 60 Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking. These may be identified by the use of forward-looking words or phrases such as "believe," "expect," "intend," and "should," among others. These forward- looking statements are based on Pyrosequencing's current expectations. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for such forward-looking statements. In order to comply with the terms of the safe harbor, Pyrosequencing notes that a variety of factors could cause actual results and experience to differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in such forward- looking statements. Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations), variability of operating results, the commercial development of the DNA sequencing and genomics market, nucleic acid-based molecular diagnostics market, and genetic vaccination and gene therapy markets, competition, rapid or unexpected changes in technologies, fluctuations in demand for Pyrosequencing's products (including seasonal fluctuations), difficulties in successfully adapting the Company's products to integrated solutions and producing such products, and the Company's ability to identify and develop new products and to differentiate its products from competitors. ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/10/14/20031014BIT00760/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/10/14/20031014BIT00760/wkr0002.pdf