It is a prima facie case study on how to do it right, says Mylan Chairman and Chief Executive Mr Robert J. Coury, on the US drug maker's acquisition of Matrix Laboratories in 2007.
“We did it first”, and have added to the employee strength and have contributed locally, Mr Coury said, responding to the Indian Government's concern on overseas companies acquiring Indian drug-makers, and the impact this could have in the local market. The Hyderabad-based Matrix has been rebranded as Mylan, pending regulatory approvals.
“We are now one of the largest multinational employers here in India,” he said, adding that the employee head-count in India has gone up from 3,000 to about 8,000. Unlike any other multinational in India, with Mylan – Matrix is an integral part of the company, he said. And though China is an important market — it would not see as much activity from Mylan for another three years, he said.
Outlining the enhanced role that the Indian operations would play in Mylan's grand-plan, he said, Mylan would bring in its prescription products into India over the next six to 12 months. But he did not give details on the drugs or therapeutic areas.
“We have enough organic capabilities to sustain growth,” he said, adding however that the domestic market was ripe for consolidation. The value that the Indian operations have brought to Mylan is “not just about dollars and cents”. It's all about scale in manufacturing, research and global operations, he said.
Mylan's capex spend per year on the Indian operations is about $300 million, he said. India also helps support the submission of about 1000 drug-related dossiers across the world, besides about 70 Abbreviated New Drug Applications in the US, said Mylan President Ms Heather Bresch.
Since the Matrix buy, Mylan has integrated the two organisations, along with the generics business of Merck KGaA, to build a global, quality pharmaceutical platform with $5.5 billion in 2010 revenues and a workforce of more than 17,000 employees, company officials said.