Orchid Pharma starts work on new plant

Chennai: Orchid Chemicals and Pharmacauticals says it has started work on a new plant for making oral and sterile cephalosporins at Irungattukottai, Chennai, aimed at the export market.

"The Rs 45-crore project would consist of three plants – oral and sterile cephalosporins (tablets/syrups/capsules) and oral non-cephalosporin formulations," says deputy managing director Dr C B Rao. Additionally, the company will relocate its pilot scale research centre at the plant.

"We are also building our second research and development centre for animal house and toxicology in Sholinganallur, Chennai," says Rao. "The plants, to be completed in three months, would conform to the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) norms."

Bovis Lend Lease, the UK-based pharma design consultants, has provided conceptual designs for the plant, while Dalal Consultants and Engineers, Mumbai, looked after the engineering aspect. Dalal Consultants is part of the Mott McDonald group, an international construction firm.

"Our exports to domestic sales are targeted at a 2:1 ratio," says Rao. "The company has filed five drug master files with the USFDA, of which two are under active consideration now. If not for the 11 September attacks on the World Trade Center in New York we would have received the approval by now." Orchid Chemicals is also upgrading its plant at Aurangabad, Maharashtra, to meet international regulatory standards.

Separately, Orchid Chemicals has signed a $2-million, 50:50 joint venture with Instituto Bio Chemico Pavesa Pharma Spa, Italy, for conducting research in peptide drugs, novel anti-oxidants, niche biotech formulations and new drug delivery systems. The new venture will mostly be based in the UK.

Orchid Chemicals, which also has signed a joint marketing agreement with the Chennai-based pharma company Apex Laboratories, generates a revenue of around Rs 2.5 crore a month.

The company's core cephalosporin bulk activity is witnessing pricing pressures. "We are now reworking our bulk product profile by focusing on high-realisation bulk," says Rao. Orchid Chemicals has added products like cefuroxime sodium, cefpodoxime proxityl and cefdinir to its product basket.