Mumbai, June 27: The Ahmedabad-based Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd will acquire the German generic unit of Pfizer Inc, Heumann Pharma GmbH & Co Generica KG, for an undisclosed sum.
The acquisition is expected to boost Torrent’s consolidated global sales to Rs 1,000 crore from Rs 566 crore at present. It is also likely to raise the share of international business in its revenue to 50 per cent from 24 per cent.
While this is Torrent’s first high-profile acquisition in recent times, the company said the takeover does not include Heumann's manufacturing facilities, which will be retained by another Pfizer subsidiary, Heumann PCS GmbH.
The acquisition is being done through Torrent’s wholly owned German subsidiary, Torrent Pharma GmbH. Heumann Pharma Generics markets generic medicines in Germany under the brand name Heumann. The company, ranked 11th in Germany, recorded sales of 50 million euro for the fiscal ended November 30, 2004.
The deal is expected to be completed by August.
“Heumann Pharma Generics will source its products partly from Pfizer's Heumann PCS facility in Germany and partly from third-party manufacturers. Under the agreement, Heumann Pharma Generics will continue to procure part of its requirements of formulations from Heumann PCS for a specified period. Support services will also be provided by Pfizer entities in Germany till April 2006 to facilitate a smooth transition,” Torrent said.
Through the acquisition, Torrent will gain access to the 90-year old Heumann brand name, 315 marketing authorisations and 34 product registration applications, giving it a strong presence in Germany. The 8-billion-euro market in Germany is considered to be the biggest in generic pharmaceutical domain. Torrent plans to use the Heumann platform to sell these products in Germany and other EU countries.
Torrent also hopes to gain from the popularity of the Heumann brand with doctors. The present portfolio consists of 116 products, predominantly sold under prescription. Torrent feels Heumman's cardiovascular, gastro-intestinal and anti infective therapies will strengthen its market position.
Torrent is now present in more than 50 countries. It has also entered into strategic alliances with Novartis and AstraZeneca.
On the BSE today, the Torrent scrip ended sharply higher at Rs 505.80, a gain of Rs 32.60 over its previous close.
