Piramal plans to buy 2-3 firms in U.S., Europe

Piramal Healthcare Ltd is eyeing acquisitions in the U.S. and Europe, and expects growth in business during the current fiscal year to remain same as that in FY09, a senior official said on Wednesday. "We expect to buy 2-3 companies in advanced markets like the U.S. and Europe," Swati Piramal, director, Piramal Healthcare told reporters. "The company expects the same level of growth as witnessed in the last fiscal," she said, adding the firm plans to add 300-400 professionals in the super-speciality marketing division. She ruled out any proposal to sell stake in Piramal Healthcare or Piramal Life Sciences Ltd.

Source: Reuters

Piramal Health eyes acquisitions in US, Europe

Piramal Healthcare Ltd is looking for acquisitions in the US and Europe, a senior official said, adding that business should grow during the current fiscal year at about the same pace it did in 2008-09.
Piramal recently acquired US-based inhalation anaesthetics maker Minrad International Inc to boost its presence in the global critical care business and director Swati Piramal said they were looking for more.
“We expect to buy 2-3 companies in advanced markets like the US and Europe,” she told reporters on the sidelines of a conference.
Piramal Healthcare reports results for its fourth quarter ended March on Friday.
Piramal Healthcare and a related firm Piramal Life Sciences Ltd would together invest about Rs1 billion during the 12 months to March 2010, mostly on new drug development and research, she said.
The company is in the process of phase II trials of a cancer drug and expect to get approvals in the US, Australian and Indian market this year, Swati Piramal said, adding 14 new drugs were in the pipeline.
The firm plans to add 300-400 professionals in the super-speciality marketing division, she added, ruling out any plan to sell stake in Piramal Healthcare or Piramal Life Sciences Ltd.
Piramal Healthcare employs about 7,000 employees in total, she said.
Shares in Piramal Healthcare closed 0.1% higher at Rs211.05 in a Mumbai market that ended 0.74% down, while Piramal Life Sciences shares fell 1.9% to Rs48 rupees.

Source: Mint

Sanofi, Piramal proposed merger deal falls through

A proposed deal by France's Sanofi-Aventis to buy a majority stake in Indian drug maker Piramal Healthcare Ltd has fallen through due to differences over valuation, a newspaper reported on Monday. In Februray, a source familiar with the situation had told Reuters that GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Sanofi-Aventis were bidding for the Indian drug maker, with the sale price perhaps going as high as $1.5 billion. Mumbai-based Piramal has repeatedly denied acquisition reports, calling them 'unfounded', and has said the founder has no intention of diluting current ownership levels. "Sanofi Aventis had put a valuation of over 300 rupees per share for Piramal Healthcare. But, this price was not acceptable to the promoters," The Economic Times newspaper quoted a merchant banker familiar with the development as saying. Talks between the two companies had reached an advanced stage before it collapsed, the paper said, citing another senior pharma industry official briefed about the proposed deal. A Piramal spokesman declined comment while Sanofi-Aventis officials could not be reached for comments immediately.