British drug-maker GlaxoSmithKline Plc will invest Rs 864 crore to set up a new factory in India, creating 250 jobs, the company said.
The location for the plant is yet to be finalised, said CEO Andrew Witty, who was in India to take part in a conference in New Delhi.
When complete, the new factory will make pharmaceutical products for the Indian market at a rate of eight billion tablets and one billion capsules a year, the company said. The plant is expected to be operational by 2017, and will include a warehouse, site infrastructure and utilities to support the manufacturing and packing of the medicines, it added.
In India, GSK has three consumer healthcare products factories (Nabha in Punjab, Sonepat in Haryana and Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh), one vaccines packaging unit and one pharmaceuticals products plant (both in Nashik, Maharashtra).
The company has invested Rs 1,017 crore in local manufacturing over the last decade. It is building capacity in the country to support its products in areas such as gastroenterology and anti-inflammatory medicines.
Around 8,500 people work in India for GSK. The company has a key presence in dermatology and vaccines. GSK's consumer business leads the segment, the company said, with six billion cups of its best-known product Horlicks consumed by over 30 million households every year.