According to a report on clinical research by the Confedera
tion of Indian Industry (CII), the contract research service market is estimated
to be around $9 billion. "There is an increased global trend towards
collaborative outsourcing," the CII report says. The global outsourcing
pre-clinical work and clinical research accounts for nearly $13 billion.
| Human Genome
Inc eager to foray in India
Human Genome Sciences Inc has shown interest in the
Indian biotech industry at the Global Partnering Summit organized by Frost
& Sullivan in New Delhi this month. Dr William A Haseltine, founder
and CEO, Human Genome Sciences, informed that he is looking at
opportunities to work together with Indian pharmaceutical and
biotechnology companies for the discovery and development of new
pharmaceutical products.
"India is showing enormous change in its approach
and the biotechnology industry here offers immense opportunities for the
domestic as well as overseas firms. Looking at the presence of a vast
skilled manpower due to the country’s deep commitment to higher
education, and the infrastructure for the biotech industry, we are
seriously looking at possibilities to partner with Indian firms
here," said Haseltine.
According to Dr Haseltine, "Venture capital base
has to be strong as capital flows where there is opportunity and India
offers it in large quantity. Few people are aware that venture capital
investment in the US biotech industry is not from the US alone. So, in
India there is a need of establishing strong and aggressive venture
capital fund for the biotech industry and research."
"European companies from France, Sweden, among
others, form the backbone of capital investment in the US biotech industry
and the same can be brought here," he added. Talking about
partnerships with Indian firms, Dr Haseltine said, "We use
collaborations for the development of gene therapy products, small
molecule drugs, and diagnostic products discovered using our genomics-based
technology."
Established in 1992 Human Genome Sciences Inc focuses on discovery,
development, manufacturing as well as marketing gene-based drugs to treat
and cure disease. It has nine products in clinical development, including
drugs to treat such diseases as cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus,
hepatitis C and immuno deficiencies. |
But more importantly, according to Proximare Inc, a business
consultant for pharma, biotech and related companies, over $200-million worth
work is likely to be outsourced to India over the next 12 months in the field of
biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.
"There are around a dozen of biotech and pharma
companies that are considering outsourcing their work to India through partners
or starting a greenfield project. This can be a motivational aspect for the
Indian companies to explore their dimensions. By looking at present scenario, we
can predict that around $200 million work in pharma and related areas is likely
to be outsourced to India in the next 12 months," said Nailesh A Bhatt,
managing director, Proximare. "The companies looking at India for
outsourcing are in the $50 million to $1 billion-plus category in terms of
revenues," he added.
According to Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, chairperson and managing
director, Biocon, the biotechnology industry in India holds a $9 billion market
potential by 2010 across various industry segments, given the huge knowledge
pool, a vibrant pharmaceutical industry and rich biodiversity that the country
is showing. "The industry is expected to grow at 25-30 per cent per annum
from the present level of $400 million," she emphasized. "While
internationally, this sector has witnessed significant investment and venture
capital activity, India is yet to emerge as a key player," Mazumdar-Shaw
said at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) seminar. However, India is fast
emerging not only as a destination—the prime source as well as the market for
new generation pharmaceuticals, biotech products and diagnostics, but also as an
international hub for contract research and manufacturing, she added.
More and more pharmaceutical and life sciences companies are
adopting complex networking, collaborative and outsourcing strategies in order
to blend cost efficiencies with maximized innovation in the drug development
cycle. Indian contract research organizations are becoming major players in this
billion-dollar industry. This is one of the main reasons for the leaders of a
renowned forum like "World Economic Forum" to incorporate
pharmaceutical outsourcing subject into their agenda.
Since 1986, the World Economic Forum and the Confederation of
Indian Industry (CII) have held a yearly India Economic Summit in New Delhi.
With hundreds of senior business leaders from India and abroad, foreign public
personalities and members of the government and senior officials, the gathering
is now acknowledged as the most important international business event in India.
The list of companies considering outsourcing work to India
include small to mid-sized pharma companies and biotech companies besides major
pharma companies.
Some of Proximare’s clients include Merck, Bristol-Myers,
Squibb, Warner-Lambert, Colgate-Palmolive, Sumitomo, InnoCentive and Pfizer.
"Most of our existing clients are keen on setting up research and
development (R&D) work in India," Bhatt said.
The high quality knowledge base and low infrastructure costs are some of the
key attractions of Indian biotech industry for the global audience. But it is
time to understand India’s own skill set for its development. Actually, it is
a crucial aspect for drivers of the India’s biotech ship.
Faiz Askari
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