Small BusinessGlenmark Pharma to outlicense NCEs
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is confident of outlicensing at least one of its new chemical entities (NCEs) under development before the end of this financial year, according to the chief executive and managing director, Glenn Saldanha.
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“We are in negotiations with multiple players and are looking at the right valuations,” he said on the sidelines of the India Pharma Summit organised by the Department of Pharmaceuticals and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
Saldanha said a major candidate for outlicensing deals in the near future would be the diabetic drug Melogliptin (GRC 8200), which was returned by Merck in February last year as part of its strategy to exit from diabetes research. The drug candidate is now in the advanced Phase-II of clinical trials.
Glenmark has six molecules under development. Its Crofelemer, an anti-diarrheal molecule under development, is now in Phase-III of clinical trials, with plans for a launch in developing countries by next year. Eli Lilly, which had in-licensed an osteoarthritis and pain molecule from Glenmark, also had suspended further development in October, last year.
Glenmark Pharmaceutical’s flagship drug under development, Oglemilast, had failed in clinical trials for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or smoking-induced acute bronchitis, in August last year. Forest Laboratories of the US, which had outlicensed the molecule, is continuing clinical trials for asthma.
Indian companies such as Dr Reddy’s, Glenmark, Lupin and Piramal Healthcare are working on about 50-70 drug candidates to become the first Indian drug maker to come out with at least one original molecule in the commercial stage before 2010-11.
New drug development is a complex process and for a single product to make it to market, many hundreds or thousands of compounds have to be tested, and the preclinical and clinical failure rates are high, in a process involving 10-12 years.
To repay Rs 300 cr of debt
Glen Saldanha said the company plans to raise about Rs 550-600 crore from the initial public offer of its 100 per cent subsidiary Glenmark Generics Ltd. (GGL). About Rs 300 crore from the IPO would be used to retire debts and the rest for expansion plans of GGL.
Glenmark, which had a debt burden of about Rs 1,900 crore, had recently raised Rs 400 crore through a qualified institutional placement issue.