Sun Pharma sells US-based manufacturing unit to Nostrum Lab

The move is part of the company's consolidation of manufacturing business in the US

Drug major Sun Pharma today said it has sold its manufacturing unit in Ohio to Nostrum Laboratories Inc for an undisclosed sum as part of the company's consolidation of manufacturing business in the US.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries said in a regulatory filing that one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries has entered into an agreement with Nostrum Laboratories Inc for the divestment of the Bryan (Ohio) unit in the US.

As a part of the agreement, the undisclosed Sun Pharma subsidiary has divested the unit as a going concern along with the employees and related products to Nostrum.

"During the divestment process, Sun Pharma was cognizant that the interests of its employees working in the unit were not compromised," the company said.

While other details of the transaction are confidential, the financial impact of this development on Sun Pharma is negligible, the Mumbai-based firm said.

In September, the company had said that it plans to sell a manufacturing facility in Ireland that was owned by Ranbaxy. Sun completed the USD 4 billion acquisition of Ranbaxy in March, almost a year after announcing the deal.

The divestment process picks up pace on the heels of Sun Pharma Managing Director Dilip Shanghvi saying in August that the company would look at rationalising manufacturing footprint.

Sun Pharma shares today ended at Rs 768.60 apiece on the BSE, up 1.39 per cent from previous close.