Mylan says will invest $ 5-billion in Andhra Pradesh

The US based pharma company looks to expand presence in India with the investment

US generics pharmaceutical company, Mylan, today said it was looking at expanding its presence with an additional investment of $ 5 billion in Andhra Pradesh.

Rajeev Mukundan, senior vice-president (legal) of Mylan, who was a part of a delegation representing the US-India Business Council(USIBC), informed Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu about the latest investment plans on Monday.

"We are looking at expanding our presence with an additional investment of $5 billion in Andhra Pradesh," Rajeev was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the chief minister's office.

An independent confirmation from Mylan about the investment plans shared with AP government is awaited from the company.

During the meeting the company vice-president informed the chief minister that the pharmaceutical company already has four facilities in Visakhapatnam.

Mylan had entered India in 2007 by acquiring a Hyderabad-based active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) maker, Matrix Laboratories. Since then the company had made a series of acquisitions including an US FDA approved plant in Visakhapatnam from SMS Pharmaceuticals for $ 32.5 million in the past.

With the acquisition of Agila Specialties in 2013, Mylan significantly expanded and strengthened its global injectable platform by adding six additional injectable facilities in India. It has state-of-the art R&D facilities for API and other products at Hyderabad and for injectables at Bengaluru. These facilities have more than 1,000 scientists, according to the company.

Visakhapatnam has emerged as an alternative hub for pharmaceutical manufacturing sector next to Hyderabad after every major Pharma company-based out of the undivided AP had set up units and in the process of expanding in Viskhapatnam district. The Vizag Pharma City also boosted the presence of pharma units from out side India, including Eisai Pharma of Japan among other companies.

Meanwhile, Srini Srinivasan, managing director the US-based Hospira, who was also a part of the delegation informed the chief minister that the company has already invested Rs 2,500 crore in its manufacturing facility in Visakhapatnam.

The company has been building a 1.1 million square foot manufacturing facility with a capacity to add 500 million units of sterile injectable drugs to Hospira's supply chain annually, according to the previous reports. The plant was to start operations by the end of last year. However, the company was yet to clear the observations it had received from the US FDA during the pre-approval inspections.

The USIBC delegation was led by its executive vice-president Diane Farrel.

A delegate from Johnson & Johnson evinced interest in working with the state on reducing infant and maternal mortality rate, women health and hygiene. Some of the delegates also expressed their keenness on vaccination/immunization programmes of the government, according to the chief minister's office.

"I'm open to public and private investments in healthcare. We can discuss your proposals with our Health Advisory Committee and take it forward," the Chief Minister said in response to this and other suggestions in the meeting, according to the statement.