Lupin Ltd, one of the top five domestic pharmaceutical companies, plans to revamp its drug research programme and foray into novel biotech and reverse engineering of biotech drugs (or biosimilars).
It would be complete by 2012 with a total investment of over Rs 11,300 crore, including an estimated Rs 2,300 crore from RIL and Rs 9,000 crore from GAIL. Analysts say refineries -- Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals, Chennai Petroleum Corporation, Essar, Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation -- located in the vicinity of these pipelines would benefit as they would be able to substitute costly fuel oil with cheaper gas.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Jubilant Organosys, Orchid Chemicals, Aurobindo Pharma and Shasun Chemicals and Drugs are among those who have borrowed either to expand locally or to acquire companies abroad, but are now struggling to repay the dues, analysts say. Some of the companies' debt now exceeds their market capitalisation, as local and global investors sold stocks on concerns over slowdown and falling revenues. A few drug makers may be forced to sell assets to repay debt.
P M S Prasad has been part of Mukesh Ambani's A-team for the last 25 years. The 55-year-old engineer, now president and CEO (petroleum), Reliance Industries, joined the company in 1984, when it was building a captive power plant at Patalganga, 70 kilometres north of Mumbai.
After launching the Nano early this week, the country's leading truck and bus maker, Tata Motors, is now looking to set up a truck manufacturing plant in Myanmar with support from the Indian government in the form of financial participation.
RIL is grappling with other priorities -- sliding oil prices, shrinking refining margins and a battle with the Anil Ambani group over the supply of gas. The plan was to build an integrated pharma company in two to three years, on the lines of large domestic majors such as Ranbaxy's or Dr Reddy's Laboratories. Instead, the plan has been modified to being a start-up bulk drug manufacturing company that will launch six bulk drugs or active pharmaceutical ingredients by 2010.
The sector has expansion plans worth more than Rs 2,000 crore to increase their bed strength in response to robust demand. Fortis, which now manages 3,000 beds with a network of 26 hospitals, is planning to double capacity by 2012 with 40 hospitals. Apollo Hospitals, which has 7,500 beds in 43 hospitals in India and overseas, plans to add 2,000 beds in two years. Meanwhile, the 17-hospital Wockhardt chain will soon add hospitals at Kolkata, Mumbai and at Nasik in Maharashtra.
Domestic pharmaceutical market registered a value growth of 14.4 per cent in January and 9.9 per cent in the 12 months ended January 2009. The yearly turnover was Rs 34,487.17 crore. The growth of the domestic drug sector, which was just 6.8 per cent in November 2008, improved to 13.2 per cent in December and to 14.4 per cent this January.
RIL has been using gas from GAIL during the past three months to test-fire the 1,440-km east-west pipeline, India's longest, from Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh to Bharuch in Gujarat. Only 100 km of the pipeline remains to be test-fired. It will transport gas from the world's largest gas discovery at the Krishna-Godavari basin in the Bay of Bengal to Jamnagar in Gujarat, where it has set up the world's largest petroleum refinery.
Despite a troubled job market that could continue for another year or more, many B-schools are looking at expanding the number of seats by up to 50 per cent and launching new programmes. B-schools maintain the demand for good students will remain even in a troubled job market and the student pool and programme portfolio need to be expanded. "Besides, when these students pass out in the next two years, the market will be better," said a director from one of the institutes.
The options include doing away with Day Zero and reducing placement fees. Day Zero is the name given to the day placements begin at the IIMs. Day Zero and Day One are reserved for top companies and placement fees are higher on these days. In good times, most students are placed on these days, leaving the smaller companies to return empty-handed.
Falling crude prices and the global credit crunch have jeopardised India's efforts to attract more investment in oil exploration and production, with several domestic and international companies opting to sell part of their participating interest in E&P projects. Around half-a-dozen companies are currently in talks with exploration and production majors -- mainly state-owned Oil India and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation -- to farm out part of their stakes.
Eight companies are in the fray for rolling out gas networks in six cities, bids for which were invited by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board. The deadline for submission of the bids expired on Tuesday.
At a time when the economic slowdown is eating into corporate earnings, the country's economy hotels, including Krizm Hotels and Berggruen Hotels, are going ahead with their expansion plans.
"We have a cash balance of close to Rs 1,500 crore. A majority of this balance can be used for acquisitions as our annual working capital requirement is only Rs 25-30 crore. I will not rule out a buyout of companies to expand our domestic business," said Mernosh Kapadia, senior executive director, GSK India. It is speculated that GlaxoSmithKline Plc is in talks to acquire leading Indian drug major Piramal Healthcare, in a deal valued over $1.5 billion.
High crude oil prices in 2008 have left the government richer by a few thousand crore rupees. In 2008-09, the government earned "windfall profits" from the petroleum sector as crude oil prices spiked, touching a high of $147 in July 2008.
Refining margin is the difference in prices of crude oil and finished products. More exposure to diesel behind less fall in Indian refining margins.
Here is another sign that the economy is slowing. The growth rate of diesel and petrol consumption is down sharply, though it is still in the positive territory.Year-on-year growth in diesel consumption in December 2008 was down to a mere 1.5 per cent as against 10.7 per cent growth in December 2007. Consumption of petrol grew 5.5 per cent in the month compared with 9.5 per cent in December 2007.Preliminary data for January showed that diesel consumption grew only 2 per cent.
New drug discovery and contract research have taken a back seat as global drug majors have slowed down their research and development offshoring to India.
If Taro fails to address the issues raised by the US Food and Drug Administration, it may face ban on many of its products in the US market, made from the facility at Ontorio, Canada. If Taro fails to address the issues raised by the US Food and Drug Administration, it may face ban on many of its products in the US market, made from the facility at Ontorio, Canada. If Taro fails to address the issues raised by the US FDA, it may face ban on many of its products.
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