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Cadila Healthcare eyes acquisition, tie-up

Cadila Healthcare Ltd, a leading Indian drug company, is planning to acquire a medium size manufacturing unit outside India to help it tap new markets, the firm's president said.

Ganesh Nayak said on Tuesday Cadila was looking at various companies but was yet to zero in on a firm. It The Indian company will spend between Rs 500 million and Rs 1 billion on acquiring the manufacturing unit, he added.

"We're looking at acquiring a manufacturing unit with product registration outside India to manufacture our dossiers," Nayak said.

The acquisition of the manufacturing unit would be funded partly from the reserves of the company's initial public offering and through debts from financial institutions, Nayak said.

Cadila, which raised Rs 3.7 billion through its initial public offering, has been using the proceeds to fund acquisitions and domestic project expansions, besides paying off old debts.

Cadila and a European pharmaceutical company have also agreed to distribute Cadila's range of products in the European Union, Nayak said. "The agreement will be signed shortly."

Cadila has a strong presence in India's cardiovascular, anti-infective, gastrointestinal and biological drug segments.

It has two state-of-the-art manufacturing units in western Gujarat state and markets its products in over 40 countries.

It recently acquired 27.72 per cent of the equity in German Remedies Ltd from Asta Medica AG and Heller AG through its fully owned subsidiary, Recon Healthcare Ltd, for Rs 1.48 billion.

It also paid Rs 526 million for perpetual overseas rights for five Asta Medica brands.

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