• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

Stocks

• Quotes
• SE Diary
• Scoreboard
• Open-End Mutual Fund

Cross Currency

• Rates
  
  

Shipping

• Ports
  
  

Archives

• Yesterday
• Datewise
• Resources

Group Sites

• The Hindu
• Business Line
• Sportstar
• Frontline
• The Hindu eBooks
• The Hindu Images

P.T. Jyothi Datta

Mumbai , Jan. 16

ZYDUS Cadila, the Ahmedabad-based pharma company, has embarked on a two-pronged strategy to grow its operations in the US and European generic drugs market. Even as it actively explores possibilities for more acquisitions in the European market, the company seeks to grow in the US on the strength of its own networks.

"The company is pursuing inorganic growth in the European market and is looking at several proposals in this regard. However, in the US, Zydus Cadila seeks to establish its own networks as it taps the market for generic (chemically-equivalent) drugs that would be going off patent," company officials told Business Line.

Zydus Cadila had firmed up its base in France with the acquisition of Alpharma France, last year. "At present, the company is in the process of registering internationally about 90 products that came with the France acquisition," the Zydus representative said.

It now seeks to pursue a similar strategy in markets such as Germany, Spain and Italy, the official said.

Meanwhile, the company had recently announced the establishment of Zydus Pharmaceuticals USA Inc for supplying finished dosage formulations to the US generic market place. However, the first step towards establishing operations in the US market was taken in 2002, when Zydus Healthcare LLC was set up to focus on the sales of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API), that go into the finished forms of the drugs.

Between these two wholly-owned subsidiaries in the US, Zydus Cadila will be well-placed to leverage its strengths in the API and generic formulations business. This strategy assumes significance, given that the world's largest generic market is expected to throw up tremendous opportunities when about $40-billion worth of branded drugs go off patents over the next five years.

"Given our strategic intent, our networks and personnel have been put in place in the US and European markets," the company representative said. Zydus Pharmaceuticals USA Inc will be headed by Mr Joseph Renner as its Chief Executive Officer. Mr Renner has over 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry, as the Chief Operating Officer of Sandoz, USA, previously Geneva Pharmaceuticals. He was responsible for the business operations during a period of growth in the company's US generic business, according to a Zydus communication.

More Stories on : Outlook | Pharmaceuticals

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Cordite Factory goes on modernisation drive

Copyright © 2004, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line