New Delhi: Pfizer India Ltd, a subsidiary of the US pharmaceutical major, is set to expand its operations despite its parent’s massive cost-cutting initiative, Meenakshi Nevatia, country president and managing director of Pfizer India said in an interview.
“India is a priority market. And Pfizer will only expand in India. So, next year there will be continued expansion, despite the global challenge. The intention now is to look at how we can expand and grow manufacturing. We are also looking to expand our sales, because we are focused on driving this growth next year and make us grow commercially as well,” Nevatia added.
The move assumes significance because its parent, Pfizer Inc. is reportedly looking to cut jobs at its Sandwich, Kent site in the UK as part of its $3.5 billion downsizing initiative. The drugmaker reported a third-quarter loss of $2.4 billion, compared with an $8.6 billion profit a year ago. Its earnings took a hit with a $5.6 billion inventory write-down in covid-19 therapeutic Paxlovid and vaccine Comirnaty. Its Q3 revenue fell 42% from a year earlier to $13.2 billion.
As part of its India plan, the company is looking to expand production at its facilities in Goa, Visakhapatnam and Ahmedabad, having a combined capacity of 4.5 billion units.
“We are expanding in Goa and Vishakhapatnam. We are looking to add production lines, to increase capacity. We also have a partnership with Zydus in Gujarat, which makes oncology products. In fact, there we bring more and more products. We have shifted some from other parts of the world to the Gujarat plant. One is happening as we speak. Across the board, we’re looking to expand our manufacturing footprint.”
Nevada, on the other hand, did not reveal the investment amount for its capacity expansion. “We have not set aside numbers as such. But of course, capex (capital expenditure) lines have certain targets.”
The company is also looking to recruit individuals for research and development. “Similarly, on the R&D side, we are continuously hiring more people. Our R&D center is based in Chennai.”
Pfizer’s largest research and development facility outside the United States is located at IIT Madras research park, where it has more than 3,000 employees. 70% of Pfizer’s drug sales in India are produced locally, with the Goa plant contributing approximately 50% of its sales.
The company also plans to move its other pharmaceutical science small molecules to Chennai from Connecticut in the US. With this move, it is hoped that the regulatory bodies will simplify the process of bringing and launching more products in India.
Similar plans by companies are set to help the government achieve its goal of expanding the pharmaceutical industry fourfold to $200 billion by 2030. The sector should be able to achieve the goal with the help of industrial, academic and manufacturing-linked incentives announced for industrial research and development, said more early Arunish Chawla, secretary at the Department of Pharmaceuticals.
According to a report by EY-Parthenon and Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Organization of India, India’s pharmaceutical industry has the potential to grow to $450 billion by 2047.
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Updated: 26 Nov 2023, 22:02 IST