The Bangalore-based biotechnology player Biocon Limited is all set to tap the biopharmaceuticals market in CIS, thanks to the region's encouraging response for advanced biopharmaceuticals.

The company has registered its Insugen and cancer drug BIOMAb EGFR in the region, besides marketing a range of drugs, including biopharmaceuticals.

"If a company is already engaged in marketing the drugs in the European Union, then it will have no difficulty in entering the region. Biocon is yet to market its comprehensive portfolio of renal therapy immunosuppressant products, including renodapt, tacrograf, cyclophil ME, rapacan and erypro in CIS," said, Rakesh Bamzai, president, marketing, Biocon Limited.

The company entered the region almost six years ago with its foray into Uzbekistan and Georgia with statins, anti-diabetes and oncology active pharmaceutical ingredients. Over the years, it has built its formulated branded products in the region.

Going forward, Biocon views CIS as an important market. There are clear indications that the region is open to pharmaceutical formulations from India. This is where companies like Biocon have paved its path to cater the requirements in the region. There is a huge market for oncology and life style disorder drugs, including cardiovascular and diabetes, which also leads to increasing demand for kidney drugs.

"The deterrents in the region include stringent regulations, which vary from region to region. There is a need to clearly comprehend the requirements before companies enter these markets. Another issue is the language barrier which makes the region formidable. The main problem is the lack of synchronisation in the CIS markets. If the market demonstrates signs of coordination like the regulated regions, marketing in these countries would be far easy," said, Bamzai.

Though CIS market is fragmented (because each country has a different regulatory process of approval), its pharmaceutical market is valued at $2 billion. Hence, it offers a huge business opportunity for Indian pharma firms. All though the population is relatively small in the region, healthcare spending is on the rise. There is a huge demand for newer drugs. Therefore the future of pharma companies will depend on the advanced products they can bring out from the research stables.