ICN PHARMACEUTICALS <ICN> SEEKING ACQUISITION ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc has about 500 mln dlrs in cash and another 1.50 billion dlrs in available credit, which it intends to use to buy a pharmaceutical company, Chairman Milan Panic said. At the company's annual meeting, he said an acquisition could take place in the next 24 months. "The company has nearly two billion dlrs available for acquisition today," Panic said, adding, "We are investigating a number of companies." One company being studied could possibly be acquired on a friendly basis, he said. Panic also said he intends to seek board approval today to repurchase up to three mln ICN common shares. Discussing the possibility of an acquisition, Panic said the such a purchase is necessary because ICN's current marketing capability would not be sufficient to support distribution of the company's products, given ICN's expectations for market growth worldwide. ICN's principal product is ribavirin, also known as Virazole. The drug is marketed in a number of countries and described as a broad-based anti-viral. The company has said its possible applications include treatment of some types of hepatitis, herpes, influenza, childhood diseases and hemorrhagic fevers. ICN has been the focus of consirable investor attention in recent months because of Virazole, which has undergone clinical trials as a possible treatment of some AIDS-related diseases. Panic said today he would not discuss the drug with regard to AIDS until the Food and Drug Administration completes its review of data submitted by the company. He said an investigation of the drug being conducted by a House Subcommittee is continuing. The subcommittee and the FDA have acknowledged they are conducting separate investigations to determine whether or not ICN witheld data from the FDA on adverse reactions to the drug. Virazole is approved for marketing in the U.S. in aerosol form as a treatment for an infection that strikes infants, called respiratory syncytial virus.