Nivalis cutting 25 jobs including CEO, chief medical officer

BOULDER — Nivalis Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: NVLS), a developer of drugs to treat cystic fibrosis, said Thursday it will part ways with its president and chief executive, Jon Congleton, and its chief medical officer, David Rodman, in an effort to reduce expenses of the struggling Boulder-based company.

The restructuring plan will affect 25 employees and cost approximately $3 million in severance costs, the company said in a prepared statement. The cuts will take place between Jan. 15, when Congleton steps down, and March 31. Congleton also will resign from the board of directors.

Michael Carruthers, the company’s chief financial officer, will take over as interim president on Jan. 15.

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The company expects to have approximately $45 million to $47 million of cash available for a “strategic alternatives,” including a possible sale, that the company announced earlier this month. That announcement came a month after Nivalis reported negative results for its cystic fibrosis drug, covosonstat.

“We are extremely grateful for the outstanding leadership of Mr. Congleton and the many contributions of Dr. Rodman, as well as our other impacted employees, who have dedicated themselves to Nivalis’ efforts in cystic fibrosis,” said Dr. Howard Furst, Nivalis’ board chairman.  “Nivalis is committed to maximizing shareholder value by preserving the company’s cash, and unfortunately this necessitates the announced restructuring.”

Nivalis’ stock was trading at $2.21 per share Thursday afternoon.