SETTING an ambitious financial target of $75 million by year 2010, the New Delhi based pharmaceutical company Promed Exports has outlined an export thrust strategy. The company intends to expand its reach in the international markets in a phased manner and support the volume requirements by additional manufacturing base in the country.

The company is in the process of preparing a phased investment programme and a zero debt company, Promed expects to fund its expansion through internal accruals. However, Promed president Deepak Bahri did not rule out the possibility of going for IPO or private equity funding route three years from now.

Promed would add at least three therapeutic categories to its product line and increase field strength in its premium market - the CIS countries, said Deepak Bahri, president, Promed Exports. In the CIS region Russia is the biggest market for Promed and the company expects that Russia alone will contribute in the next five years to a 2.5 times growth in turnover. A $5 million is outlined for the planned manufacturing plant in Russia, said Bahri. Along with developing CIS basket, Promed would enter South East Asia, Latin America and South Africa, said Bahri.

In the next phase Promed would see itself moving to the regulated markets and the list include Australia, Europe and USA. The company has scheduled its ANDA filing in these markets for 2006-07 and it expects to sell here in year 2008. To achieve the set financial and market targets Promed is exploring multiple options of collaboration.

Deepak Bahri said that the company is in talks with several overseas organisations to work out joint venture, distribution or co-marketing partnerships in different markets. He added that barring the US Promed would establish its marketing set up in all major target locations abroad either alone or in collaboration.

The India specific plans for the company which aims to tap 90 per cent of its revenue from overseas alone by 2010, include a new manufacturing plant and herbal R&D centre. The new multi-purpose production facility at Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, at an investment of Rs 25 crore is expected to go operational by mid 2005, said Bahri. The Rs two-crore R&D centre for herbal products coming up in Delhi is scheduled to go operational in a year’s time.

The centre will focus on isolation of herbal compounds, developing markers and developing herbal formulations in-house. This centre will be developed in future as the base for NCE identification from herbals, may be in the next five to seven years, Bahri outlined the plan. The centre will also collaborate with academic institutions in line with the one the company has already coined with NIPER to develop formulations and analytical process development for both herbal and chemical drugs. In the herbal segment, Promed is set to launch its first product in the next three months. The research based poly herbal product, a hepato protector, has undergone long term toxicity studies and clinical trial is on in 300 patients at four centres in the country. Promed intends to position the product as an OTC as well as prescription product, as a curative and a prophylactic, said Bahri.