Aortech in dispute with biggest customer

Shares in Aortech International, the developer of a polymer for medical devices, fell following the announcement that it is in dispute with its largest customer, St Jude Medical.

The dispute centres around the use that St Jude Medical is making of Optim, which is actually Elasteon supplied by Aortech. Aortech alleges that there has been a "material breach of contract" by St Jude Medical.

Chairman Bill Brown explained that the material is used to insulate pacemakers, but declined to explain the exact nature of the breach of contract.

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It is the latest blow in a long-running saga that has given investors a white knuckle ride over the past year, during which its share price hit a high of 371p before plummeting.

In late September, Aortech's shares halved after warning that takeover talks had collapsed and that it was investigating funding options.

CM