Mumbai/Hyderabad, Aug 20: Cheminor Drugs, part of the Dr Reddy's group, has signed a letter of intent with DSM Andeno, Netherlands, for the establishment of a 50:50 joint venture in the country for drug intermediates and active ingredients. DSM Andeno, a key producer of fine chemical intermediates, is one of the 5 business units of the $6 billion DSM Fine Chemicals BV.

Dr Reddy's chairman, K Anji Reddy said, "This relationship is part of our strategy for growth by meeting the outsourcing needs of the pharmaceutical industry and leveraging our skills in process development and multistep organic synthesis." Both partners expect the alliance to generate new business of several tens of millions of dollars in the coming years. The intermediates and active ingredients will be marketed worldwide.

Cheminor managing director, GV Prasad, said that the cooperation with DSM Andeno augments the existing strengths of both partners in organic intermediates and bulk actives.

"DSM's strengths in process and technical know-how of key intermediates and multinational customer base synergise with Cheminor's process development capabilities and its state-of-the-art manufacturing infrastructure, creating an entity ideally positioned to meet the outsourcing needs of high value bulk actives and intermediates for the global pharmaceutical industry," he said.

Hyderabad-based Cheminor Drugs has several FDA approved facilities in India which also meet the CGMP (current good manufacturing practices) standards.

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