put thesse metrics to pediapharm - potential.....The Financial Post reports in its Wednesday edition that Concordia Healthcare is buying Amdipharm Mercury from Cinven for $3.5-billion (U.S.), including assumed debt, boosting its portfolio of drugs to 200 from 20 and giving it a foothold in overseas markets. A Reuters dispatch to the Post reports that Amdipharm Mercury, created with the merger of Mercury Pharma and Amdipharm in 2012, buys off-patent drugs from big pharma firms such as Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline and Abbott Laboratories, and sells them in about 100 countries. Amdipharm's 190 drugs are used in several difficult-to-treat conditions including hyperthyroidism, depression and bacterial infections. The deal is the biggest in Concordia's history. Amdipharm is Concordia's second acquisition this year as it tries to gain scale through acquisitions, much like its rival Valeant Pharmaceuticals International. Concordia chief executive officer Mark Thompson called the acquisition a "powerful cash-machine" that would help the company with future deals. The deal is expected to boost Concordia's sales to about $870-million to $920-million in 2015 on a pro-forma basis, of which about $530-million to $560-million is expected to come from Amdipharm.