Granules Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyderabad-based Granules India, has agreed to acquire 12.5% stake in US-based development-stage pharmaceuticals firm USpharma for an undisclosed amount.
“The agreement with USpharma complements our internal product development programme and expands our product portfolio by leveraging external product development capabilities,†Krishna Prasad Chigurupati, chairman and managing director of Granules, said in a filing with stock exchanges.
“The successful development of limited competition products by USpharma provides long-term growth for the company,†he said.
USpharma makes generic pharmaceuticals, including controlled-release, controlled-substance and patent-challenge products.
USpharma has formulation, development and manufacturing facilities in Philadelphia and Mumbai, and an analytical laboratory in Kansas City. It has submitted five abbreviated new drug applications (ANDA) with paragraph IV certifications, of which four ANDAs have already been out-licensed to Granules exclusively.
Granules, which makes active pharmaceuticals ingredients (APIs), intermediates and finished dosages, is known for making drugs such as Paracetamol, Ibuprofen, Metformin, and Guaifenesin, according to its website.
It has two joint ventures—one with Hubei Biocause in China and another with Ajinomoto OmniChem in Belgium. In November 2013, Granules acquired Hyderabad-based Auctus Pharma for Rs 120 crore. Auctus Pharma has an API facility in JN Pharma City near Visakhapatnam and an intermediate facility at Bonthapally in Telangana.
Granules reported Rs 1431 crore in turnover in the financial year ended March 31, 2016, of which 38% was from the North American Market.
Like this report? Sign up for our daily newsletter to get our top reports.