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Drug-maker Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd hopes to regain lost ground in the months ahead, as the rupee strengthens against the dollar.
The company's consolidated net profit had almost halved in the three months ended December 2011, due to a Rs 102-crore loss, as its foreign currency loan got re-valued due to rupee depreciation, Mr Glenn Saldanha, Chairman and Managing Director of the company said.
“This quarter, with the rupee going the other way, we will recover some ground. And if the rupee touches 49 (against the dollar), we will recover the entire ground,” Mr Saldanha told Business Line . The rupee was at 49.79 against the dollar on Monday. .
It is a notional loss, Mr Saldanha said, adding that there was no immediate cause for concern as the loans were for a long tenure. The fluctuating rupee had, however, increased Glenmark's debt to Rs 2074 crore, from about Rs 1,900 crore, mid last year.
Strong revenue
Despite the challenging global environment, the company registered strong revenue growth of 38 per cent for the third quarter, he said. “All our operating regions have registered double digit growth with the US, Europe, Latin America, and ROW (rest of the world) businesses recording over 45 per cent sales growth,” he added.
Meanwhile, the company's deals formalised last year with Sanofi are proceeding along expected lines, he said.
In the coming three months, Sanofi will commence the second phase of clinical trials in the US on GBR 500, a prospective drug molecule targeting Ulcerative Colitis, he said.
Similarly, its GBR 15300 that targets pain (also licensed out to Sanofi) will initiate proof of concept studies (phase II a trials) in the first six months of the financial year 2012-2013, he said.
Arbitration
Glenmark is at present also locked in arbitration proceedings over Crofelemer – a prospective drug molecule licensed-in from Napo Pharma, and targeting multiple diarrhoeal conditions.
Following Napo's purported termination of the collaboration agreement, the Arbitration Panel granted an interim order prohibiting Napo from terminating the agreement.
The arbitration hearing is scheduled for March-end 2012. But in the meanwhile, Glenmark is continuing with efforts to move the drug forward by initiating filings in the rest of the world markets where it holds the rights, Mr Saldanha said.
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