Melbourne, Jan 31, 2008 (ABN Newswire) - Further to the recent announcement of the visit by Victoria Gorbacheva, MD PhD, the Head of Business Development in Russia of Berlin-Chemie/Menarini Pharma GmbH, the Directors of Solagran Limited (ASX: SLA) are very pleased to announce the intended path forward following a week of intense and productive meetings.

The primary outcome of the meetings was a jointly-developed proposal for a comprehensive strategic partnership between Solagran and the Menarini Group to launch and distribute Ropren throughout Russia, the CIS countries, and both Central and Eastern Europe. Dr Gorbacheva will put this proposal to Menarini upon her return to Europe.

Dr Gorbacheva has conveyed to her colleagues in Europe that in her view:

"Ropren is a unique natural product with very low side effects, which is already registered as a pharmaceutical by the Russian Ministry of Health. It has the potential to be a blockbuster drug in Europe, based solely on its efficacy in the liver disease segment.

The fact that trials conducted in respected institutions have also demonstrated its potential to treat neurodegenerative disorders, normalise cholesterol levels, and at the same time deal with the many conditions associated with chronic alcohol and opiate addiction, makes it doubly attractive to us.

The extent of the opportunity presented by Ropren, as well as that embedded in Solagran's entire portfolio of Bioeffectives, with their wide range of applications in many different market segments, means that it makes sense for both Solagran and Menarini to consider a more comprehensive relationship than an in-licensing or exclusive distribution agreement.

We have together devised what I believe is a very innovative strategic partnership concept which I will be discussing with my colleagues in Europe upon my return."