Dr Reddy’s, Fujifilm venture by March

Drug maker Dr Reddy’s Laboratories is likely to sign an agreement with image processing and photography technology company Fujifilm by the fiscal end for a foray into the Japanese generics market.

Dr Reddy’s had announced the partnership in July.

Though nitty-gritty of the deal is still being worked out, Dr Reddy’s is looking at a three-year timeframe to gain full traction in that country, said a senior company official. “Japan is a strategic market in our endeavour to become a global leader in the generic industry. Efforts on our collaboration with Fujifilm are picking up pace, and both the management teams are discussing detailed business and operational plans. We expect to sign a definitive agreement by this fiscal-end.”

“We have indicated a timeframe of about three years for the partnership to build traction and approach the market as per the demand. We are still working on identifying the product categories,” the official said.

Tokyo-headquartered Fujifilm has an exclusive partnership with Dr Reddy’s in the generics business. Plans are afoot to set up a joint venture company, with Fujifilm owning a 51% stake and Dr Reddy’s the balance, the official said.

The new company will develop, manufacture and promote generic drugs, utilising both Fujifilm’s advanced quality control technologies it has built up through its photo film business and Dr Reddy’s expertise in cost competitive production technologies for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and formulations gained over the years by supplying to markets globally.

The venture intends to launch its first products in Japan in the next three to four years and also to design products that fit the specific requirements of that market.