Claris Life Plans $15 M Project In Venezuela

The Ahmedabad-based Claris Lifesciences is planning to put up a $15 million life-saving injections project in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, with equity participation from a local bank and a local company.

Venezuelan ambassador to India Walter Marquez said Claris had made this commitment to the Venezuelan health ministry, when a delegation of Indian pharmaceutical companies recently visited the country looking for opportunities to make joint investments there.

The Rs 65 crore Claris is engaged in production of plasma volume expander, protein injections and a range of products for kidney failure and cancer patients. The company is already exporting critical life-saving drugs and injections to Venezuela.

 

Confirming this, Claris Lifesciences head (Latin America) Shreshth Bhatia said his company had already initiated talks with the Venezuelan health ministry and concerned officials to expedite the implementation of the project. The company is also scouting for a local partner and has started negotiations with a couple of Venezuelan banks for joint investment in the project, he said.

Claris will hold a majority stake in the proposed project and would have the management control, Shreshth Bhatia said.

Emphasising that Latin America is a focus area of Claris, he said the form already owns a $4 million laboratory set up in 1998-99 in Sao Paulo in Brazil.

Claris also markets a range of GMP-approved products such as Profol (an anesthesia injection), blood products and other specialty products in Latin America.

However, in Venezuela, Claris would focus on high-margin R&D-based products that create value for the company through proprietary knowledge, Bhatia said.