Orchid's facility gets MHRA approval

Chennai-based Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd has announced that its betalactam active pharmaceuticals ingredient (API) facility in Aurangabad has been approved by the UK regulator, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

"The approval is a major milestone for Orchid on several counts," said K Raghavendra Rao, managing director, Orchid. MHRA's approval would enable the company to market its key betalactam product, Piperacillin"�Tazobactam in the European markets.

The accreditation, the first international approval for the facility, will play a significant role in the company's plans to diversify its range of pharmaceutical products.

The formulation of Piperacillin"�Tazobactam will be done at the company's Irangattukottai plant in Chennai. The plant is currently undergoing inspection and is expected to receive the MHRA approval by February 2007.

The product is a part of the distribution arrangements that the company has entered into with two generic partners for the US and European markets.

The distribution arrangements will be finalised in a week or so, said a company official.