Domestic pharmaceutical major Nicholas Piramal India is preparing an export plan with a difference.

Unlike its peers, which are currently in a race to export generic versions of patented drugs to be sold in developed markets, Nicholas Piramal is planning to position itself as a 'high-end' contract manufacturer.

The company has decided not to cross the path of multinational research & development-based companies by launching generics.

Instead, it is planning to befriend multinationals from the US, Europe and Japan, and offer its facilities to manufacture their products -- not just for the Indian market, but for their global needs.

Ajit Mahadevan, vice-president, group strategic planning, Nicholas Piramal, said:, "We do not want to get into the generics space (for patented drugs) like others, as it creates distrust among multinational companies. We will instead focus on partnerships and offer our services as a contract manufacturer for both bulk drugs and formulations for their global requirements."

"However, we will concentrate only on high-end products, which are more complex and difficult to manufacture. We see a big business opportunity there, as most of the large, research-based multinationals are currently getting out of manufacturing and restricting their operations to just R&D and marketing," he said.

The company is planning to avoid the generics space (for drugs under patent) as it involves court battles overseas.

"If you are fighting a patent battle with one company, other multinationals shy away from dealing with you. We do not want this to happen," Mahadevan said.

However, the company is open to marketing 'grandfather' generic molecules -- products whose patents have long expired in the developing and non-regulated markets.

In India too the company is positioning itself as a marketing partner for multinationals, and is focusing on strengthening its team.