Dubai's DM Healthcare plans to invest Rs 4,000 cr in India

With the investment, the company is likely to set up new hospitals, healthcare services and a medical college

Dubai based healthcare services company DM Healthcare is expanding its footprint in India by setting up new hospitals, healthcare services and a medical college.

The company is investing over Rs  4,000 crore for this expansion for the next five years.  DM Healthcare has a plan to become a global healthcare chain by 2017. The company in the Gulf region is with a network of about 156 establishments including hospitals, clinics, diagnostic centres and pharmacies.

Speaking to Business Standard about India expansion plan, Dr Azad Moopen, chairman and managing director of DM Healthcare and  a non-resident Indian physician who was recently in Pune said, “We believe that quality healthcare should have no boundaries. With the core of our operations driven on this motto, DM Healthcare aims to reach people across geographies, socio-economic standing and healthcare offerings. At DM Healthcare, we have deeply imbibed our maxim of ‘care beyond boundaries’ into all of our undertakings. This maxim comes through in our expansions, where we aim to spread our reach across the GCC and India, as well as beyond. We aim to take our services global, as part of our Vision 2025. The Group is looking at further investment opportunities in the Middle East, Asia and Africa."

The company in setting up a Aster Medcity,  an integrated medical township that is dedicated to taking healthcare to international standards in India. It has invested of Rs  1850 crore for this project. In the initial phase, Aster Medcity will open with a 575 bed quaternary care hospital with nine centres of excellence. In phase ll, an additional 500 beds will be opened along with a medical convention centre, a four-star hotel and apartments.

Also, it has a plan to set up chain of hospitals across India under the brand name Aster. Recently, it has took over two hospitals in Pune and Kolhapur renamed and as Aster Medipoint and Aster Aadhar respectively.

"We will look at two more projects in the state along with at least a dozen greenfield and existing hospitals spread across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat in the first phase of our India expansion," said Moopen.

He also added that the group has plan to go for an IPO in the next two years either on the London Stock Exchange or Bombay Stock Exchange depending on the market conditions at that time and to raise funds from either the equity market or by term loans for the proposed expansion. Currently, a Hong Kong-based firm private equity firm  (PE) partner Olympus Capital Asia Investments Ltd, and India Value Fund Advisorsjointly hold about 40 per cent  equity stake in DM Healthcare.

According to Moopen, DM Healthcare posted a revenue of Rs .2,100 crore in fiscal year 2013 and expects a 50 per cent  growth in the current fiscal.

In India, DM Healthcare will compete with other Indian healthcare service provider establishments like Fortis, Apollo and Manipal Group. According to reports,  the value of the Indian healthcare services industry will be of $150 billion by 2017.