NephroPlus plans to set up 150 dialysis centres

Looking to tap PE funding in the next fiscal to address the expansion plan of covering all 200 districts in the country

Dialysis healthcare services provider NephroPlus will set up 150 new centres in the country in the next five years to reach out to growing need for kidney disease management services in the country.

IFC and Bessemer Venture Partners-invested NephroPlus is looking to tap private equity funding in the next fiscal to address the expansion plan of covering all 200 districts in the country besides setting up five centres in developing countries by 2020.

US-based Blue Chip Private Limited, Bessemer and IFC had so far invested Rs 85 crore, and according to NephroPlus, the existing investors are keen to participate in the next round of funding.

“We have been capitalised well for expansion up to 100 centres. To catch up with expansion beyond it, we will go for the next round of funding in 6-12 months. The current set of investors are keen to invest but we will give opportunity to new investors and the lion’s share will come from them,” Vikram Vuppala, founder and CEO of city-based NephroPlus, told mediapersons.

The five-year old company has 35 standalone operational dialysis centres in 10 states, while another 15 are in various stages of completion, he said.

Announcing its expansion plan today, Vuppala said the company was targeting a market share of 22 per cent in dialysis healthcare service in the next five years. Its share now stands at 5 per cent.

The company is eyeing potential opportunity emerging from private large hospitals for outsourcing dialysis services to them, according to him.