Rusan Pharma to export transdermal patches from Kandla SEZ

Rusan Pharma Ltd plans to export indigenously developed nicotine transdermal patches manufactured at its newly built facility at Kandla Special Economic Zone. The company is the only pharma player in India to make and export nicotine patches, to treat nicotine addiction.

"We have received our first order from Brazil Health Ministry to supply nicotine patches worth $ 20 million per annum for their program for smoking cessation. Soon a team of National Health Surveillance Agency of Brazil (ANVISA) will visit the facility," said Kunal Saxena, Managing Director of Rusan Pharma.

According to Saxena, Rusan Pharma will also look at contract manufacturing for multinational companies from around the world. "We have initiated talks for contract manufacturing at our Kandla SEZ facility," he told BusinessLine.

The new unit at Kandla has investments from Sharjah-based firm Pharma Care. "Pharma Care has invested Rs 100 crore for the research and development centre ‘Navin Saxena Research & Technology’, Clinical research organisation – ‘Quest Care’ and a specialised manufacturing unit for transdermal patches at the Kandla SEZ. We have planned additional investment of Rs 70-100 crore by 2017-18 to be made by the Sharjah-based firm Pharma Care," added Saxena.

Rusan Pharma eyes the global transdermal patches market of $40 billion. Having a total turnover of Rs 300 crore including subsidiaries, Rusan Pharma currently produces its transdermal products at its Dehradun facility, while APIs are made at its Ankleshwar facility.

"We are one of the three players in the country to sell Nicotine replacement gum in India. We are the first to launch nicotine patches in the country about one-and-half years ago. So far we have had a business of RS 5 crore from that niche segment. The Nicotine Replacement Therapy market is estimated to be around Rs 35-40 crore in India," said Saxena.

NSRT is a dedicated R&D facility, which will focus on pain, addiction, CNS and orphan diseases, drug delivery and platform technologies. It has been set up with a vision to develop, register and license its new products to third parties. It also aims to undertake contract research and joint development projects.

Further, the Quest Care (P) Ltd is a clinical research organisation (CRO) with five independent clinics having a total of 104-bed facility.