French manufacturer of artificial heart Carmat announced that it is preparing to start selling its products in the second quarter of this year on the European market, which could be more than 2,000 patients a year.
The Carmat artificial heart will be marketed under the Aeson® brand name.
Carmat shares rose about 7% at the start of trading, bringing the company's market capitalization to around 400 million euros ($ 493.3 million).
“I am pleased to confirm that we will be ready to start selling our product in the second quarter of 2021,” said Stefan Piat, CEO of Carmat.
Last month, Carmat received European regulatory approval for its product.
The work on creating an artificial heart began 27 years ago. In 1993, heart surgeon Alain Carpentier brought this idea to the French industrialist Jean-Luc Lagardeur. Lagarder, owner of the aerospace equipment company Matra, has provided Carpentier with several laboratories and engineers.
Over the years, this project has grown - in part through mergers and acquisitions, as a result of which Matra became part of the largest European aerospace corporation Airbus Group. Airbus is now Carmat's largest shareholder with a 13.2% stake. Carpentier owns 5.3%.
