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Drugmaker Lupin ’s board meets today to take stock of its financial performance for the second quarter — the three months ended September 30. But shareholders will also be looking for clarity from the management on Lupin’s generic drugs business in Japan.
Recent reports in the media had suggested that Lupin was looking to sell its generics subsidiary Kyowa Pharmaceuticals for $600 million. Japan is a large pharmaceutical market, though a very tough one to navigate. In fact, Lupin has been one of the earliest from Indian industry to venture into this extremely quality-conscious market.
In a clarification earlier this week, Lupin had told the Bombay Stock Exchange that the company “in the normal day-to-day course of business, regularly evaluates various strategic business opportunities, plans and proposals.”
Just last month, Lupin had said that it had received a GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) certificate from Japan’s regulatory authority, the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) for its Mandideep “active pharmaceutical ingredients’’ facility (Unit II). The GMP Certificate is valid till September 2024.
Read more: Lupin in $700-m cancer drug deal with Boehringer
However, in August, Lupin had announced AN agreement to divest its Japanese injectables business and related assets in Japan through its Japanese subsidiary Kyowa (Kyowa Pharmaceutical Industry Co, Ltd.) to neo ALA Co. Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Neopharma group, the UAE’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturer, headquartered in Abu Dhabi.
The plant and associated facilities based out of Atsugi, Japan, and had been engaged in sales and contract manufacturing of injectable products to meet various medical needs, Lupin had said.
The company had then clarified that this transaction would not involve or affect the other operations of Kyowa, namely research, manufacturing, marketing and distribution of oral solids and other dosage forms in Japan.
More reason for investors to be watching the signals coming from the board meeting on its Japanese operations.
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