NPIL to start commercial production of Haemaccel in Himachal pradesh

Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company Nicholas Piramal India Ltd. (NPIL) will start commercial production of Haemaccel, an injectible from Baddi(Himachal Pradesh) by December this year.

The company is shifting its manufacturing base, which is near Mumbai and is likely to invest Rs 25 crore in adding new product line in the existing Baddi facility. Also, the company plans to change its name from NPIL to Piramal Healthcare Ltd.

The company has successfully completed two years of operation in Baddi (Himachal Pradesh) and has manuafactured pharma product worth Rs 600 crore in the last financial year 2007-08.

Speaking to Business Standard, Chairman, Ajay G Pirmal, said, "We are shifting our Haemaccel (an injectible) production facility near Mumbai to Baddi (Himachal Pradesh). We are in the process of adding this new facility to our existing unit in Baddi, which will attract an investment of Rs 25 crore."

Overall, the Baddi facility will see an investment to the tune of Rs 160-170 crore including this facility, he added.

The company expects that the addition of new product line will be completed by August 2008 and hopeful to start commercial production by December this year. Further it hopes to achieve a turnover of Rs 40 crore from this new product line by the end of this fiscal year.

Also, the group company, Piramal Lifesciences Ltd, which is into drug discovery, also plans to get listed on BSE and NSE. He added that 8 drugs are in various stages of development and is likley to be launched by 2011.