Vol. 3, No. 8 August, 1999
NumberSubject
030801Core Healthcare Sets Up Intravenous Plant in Myanmar
030802Spic Restructuring Its Pharmaceutical Business
030803Ranbaxy's Parvosin to Enter Second Stage of Phase One Trials
030804Dr Reddy's Original Molecule for Cancer Awaiting ICMR Approval
030805Wockhardt Healthcare to Be Merged with Wockhardt Life Sciences
030806IDMA and OPPI Demands Scrapping of DPCO
030807Lupin Laboratories' Net Profit Down by 26 Per Cent
030808Neuland to Receive USFDA Approval for Ranitidine Hydrochloride
030809Ranbaxy to Receive Payment, Royalty for NDDS for Ciprofloxacin
030810Dabur to Receive Loan from ABN Amro for Anti-Cancer Project



































030801 Core Healthcare Sets Up Intravenous Plant in Myanmar

Core Healthcare has set up a $ 5 million plant for the Government of Myanmar in Yangon. The plant will produce intravenous fluids, tablets and capsules of various types of penicillins. This is Core's first international project to be fully commissioned and certified by it.

030802 Spic Restructuring Its Pharmaceutical Business

In its thrust towards focusing on agribusiness and fertilisers the Rs 2,456-crore Spic has initiated the second phase of restructuring to delink unrelated business like pharmaceutical and bio-tech. The Rs 89-crore pharmaceutical and Rs 15-crore bio-tech divisions will be hived off into separate companies. Last year the petroleum division (LPG) was converted into a joint venture with Caltex, an MNC. The company has drawn up a strategy to transfer the pharmaceutical division's penicillin-G manufacturing facility at Cuddalore and the formulation unit at Maraimalainagar near Chennai as a going concern to a new company, Spic Pharmaceuticals. Similarly a new company, Spic Biotechnologies will absorbthe bio-tech plants at Coimbature, Porur and Hosur as going concerns. Though it will hold the entire equity initially, it will induct joint-venture partners eventually.

030803 Ranbaxy's Parvosin to Enter Second Stage of Phase One Trials

Parvosin, or RBx 2258, Ranbaxy's first original research molecule, for use in the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy, will enter the second stage of phase one trial on September 6, 1999. The molecule has been successful in the single-dose trials and is poised to enter multi-dose testing. The company has not as yet decided whether it would licence the product to a multinational after phase two trials. It has received inquiries from companies like Bristol-Myers Squibb, Synthelabo and Pfizer for licensing the product. A new molecule, a drug for asthma, and a product for benign prostatic hyperplasia are also in the pipeline. These products come under the company's novel drug discovery programme.

030804 Dr Reddy's Original Molecule for Cancer Awaiting ICMR Approval

Dr Reddy Laboratories' original research molecule for cancer, DRF 1042, is awaiting examination by a committee of the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) on August 6. The first phase of trials would commence with the Tata Memorial Hospital and Nizam Institute of Hyderabad. The first phase would be to test the safety of patients and the second phase would be to test efficacy. The company which has already launched an anti-cancer drug, docetaxel (Docetere) is planning to introduce two more anti-cancer products before the end of the financial year. Topotecan, a SmithKline Beecham molecule and irinotecan, a Rhone-Poulenc molecule will be introduced shortly.

Meanwhile, Dr Reddy Laboratories' brand has been valued at Rs 342 crore for 1998-99 an increase of 22 per cent compared to Rs 280.9 crore in the previous year.

030805 Wockhardt Healthcare to Be Merged with Wockhardt Life Sciences

The Chennai-based subsidiary of Wockhardt, Wockhardt Heathcare, producing intravenous fluids is to be merged with Wockhardt Life Sciences, a company being created out of the agriscience, intravenous fluid and hospital businesses of Wockhardt. The merger will be effective from January 1, 2000.

The company has also confirmed that its attempt to acquire the entire equity of US-based formulation-producer Accumed for $ 5 million is off.

030806 IDMA and OPPI Demands Scrapping of DPCO

The Indian Drug Manufacturers' Association (IDMA), and the Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI) has suggested to the government that the drug prices control order (DPCO) be scrapped. The order continues to control prices of 74 drugs and over 1,000 formulations.

The DPCO was introduced in 1970 to check profits of pharmaceutical companies and to ensure the availability of common drugs at competitive prices. The order has been revised in 1979, 1987 and in 1995. The revision is done at the recommendation of two committees, the drug price control review committee and the pharmaceutical research and development committee. The prices are fixed based on the prices of raw materials and the return on net worth or capital employed which have to be provided by corporates. But companies are reluctant to provide detailed information about production fearing these will be passed on to competitors. Therefore the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority doesn't have authentic data on which to base the prices of drugs. Besides cost incurred in developing marketing teams, their training and development are ignored while fixing prices. Also its is alleged that multinationals bear the brunt of price control as 50 per cent to 75 per cent of their products are under price control. These stand at 20 per cent for Novartis, 60 per cent for Hoechst Marion Roussel and 60 per cent for Glaxo.

030807 Lupin Laboratories' Net Profit Down by 26 Per Cent

Lupin Laboratories, India's third-largest pharmaceutical company, has reported a fall in net profit of 26 per cent from Rs 34.24 crore in the previous year to Rs 25.30 crore this year. The company has declared a dividend of 25 per cent for the year. The reduction in profits was due to policy changes in the domestic formulations market in the second half, control of exports to CIS countries and China, and increase in costs due to induction of personnel in the sales force.

However Lupin Chemicals, India's largest manufacturer of Rifampcin, has recorded a 20 per cent rise in its profit to Rs 13.13 crore. Lupin Chemicals has declared a dividend of 10 per cent. The rise in profit was aided by the reduction the notified price of Rifampicin from Rs 5,220 per kg to Rs 4,885 per kg in February 1998.

030808 Neuland to Receive USFDA Approval for Ranitidine Hydrochloride

The bulk drugs and intermediates manufacturer, Neuland Laboratories is likely to receive USFDA approval for its ranitide hydrochloride. This will help the company's exports of this anti-ulcer drug to the US market valued at $ 3 billion per annum. The company's stock prices has risen sharply recently. Its bulk drugs like ciprofloxacin and intermediates salbutamol sulphate and sotalol hydrochloride continue to be exported to Europe and Canada.

030809 Ranbaxy to Receive Payment, Royalty for NDDS for Ciprofloxacin

Ranbaxy is reportedly about to receive $ 65 million from Bayer AG as an upfront payment for a novel drug delivery system modification of ciprofloxacin. The company is seeking Reserve Bank of India approval to receive the payment. Additionally, Bayer is expected to pay Ranbaxy royalties of about eight per cent on sales of the new, single daily dose ciprofloxacin for a 20-year period. The price of Ranbaxy scrip rose steeply on the Bombay Stock Exchange on the basis of reports about the above payment.

030810 Dabur to Receive Loan from ABN Amro for Anti-Cancer Project

Dabur has been sanctioned a $ 8 million loan for its anti-cancer project Axol Laboratories in the UK. The new venture is expected to commence operations in April 2001. ABN Amro India is behind arranging the loan which will be directly given to Axol by its UK counterpart. This is Dabur's first plant in the developed world and a pointer to the company's ambition in the global oncology business.