Merial, a joint venture between Merck and Company Inc (USA) and Sanofi-Aventis (France), has preferred Punjab over states like Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka for setting up a Rs 500-crore vaccine manufacturing plant.
Jean Loius Crosia, president, Merial, while speaking at a meeting with Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal at his official residence on Tuesday, confirmed that Merial had scouted for investment destinations in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka. The company, however, zeroed in on Punjab after getting a favourable response from the Punjab government.
Crosia also revealed that for the company’s operations in India, the group has formed a new company, Merial India Private Limited, with an investment of Rs 250 crore. This new company would be responsible for the setting up of an R&D centre to explore India’s domestic requirements of the foot and mouth disease vaccine, besides a full-fledged production plant, to be established in Punjab. He further informed that the company has already purchased 20 acre of land in Lalru, Mohali. The first phase of the project would be completed by 2010 and the second and third phases would be functional by 2011 and 2013 respectively. Merial is the only global pharmaceutical company exclusively devoted to animal health and it has also firmed up its plans to pump in $100 million (Rs 500 crore) FDI, by setting up a foot and mouth disease vaccine-manufacturing project at Lalru.
Besides the CM, industries minister Manoranjan Kalia, chief secretary RI Singh, principal secretary to the chief minister DS Guru, principal secretary animal husbandry SC Aggarwal, principal secretary industries and commerce SS Channy and additional principal secretary to chief minister AK Mahajan were among others present at the meeting.
Crosia claimed Merial is a leading innovation-driven animal health company, providing a comprehensive range of products to enhance the health, well-being of animals. He pointed out that Merial employed approximately 5,000 people and has operations in more than 150 countries. ?The biotech facility with world-class process and standards in Punjab will be comparable to facilities in UK, Brazil and France,? said Crosia.