The Chennai based Orchid Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd is consolidating its position in the global API market with stress on its cephalosporin products, which was the backbone of its regulated market foray in recent years.

Orchid enjoys a major share in manufacturing all the four generations of cephalosporins and other APIs including the non-cephalosporin betalactam products, penicillin and non-penicillin based products and nutraceuticals. It has also been able to garner a major business opportunity in US for a lyophilized product based on its unique US FDA approved supply position.

Orchid's API business amounted to a revenue of Rs. 83.90 crore for the fiscal 2006 in which cephalosporins contributing 91.55% with Rs. 456.58 crore. However, the revenues from APIs are lower when compared to the Rs.518.74 crore revenue in the financial year 2004-05. The non-cephalosporins, betalactum and nutraceutical business together amounted to 8.45 % of the total revenue with Rs. 42.14 crore, while the business in the previous year recorded 7.23% with Rs.40.40 crore business.

Orchid's net sale of all bulk actives during the year 2005-06 was Rs.499 crore when compared to the Rs. 559 crore in 2004-05. Sale of oral bulk actives accounted for Rs. 338 crore while it was Rs. 421 crore in the previous fiscal and the sterile bulk actives brought in revenues of Rs. 161 crore against Rs. 138 crore in the previous financial year. Orchid sold 713 MT of bulk actives and intermediates during the year under review when compared to 824 MT in previous fiscal.

While the dominant share of cephalosporins in the API business was sustained, the company has increased the sale of betalactums and non-cephalosporin, non-penicillin products.

The company's API business segment include China, Europe, the Middle East, India and Asia Pacific. These region contributed to 80.92% of the API revenues in the financial year 2005-06. The API export business recorded a revenue of Rs 498.72 crore for the fiscal, when compared to Rs. 559.14 crore in the previous year.

The share of the principal regulated markets, USA, Canada and Europe increased to 24.92% in the last financial year, from 19.91% in 2004-05. Orchid registered Rs 165 lakh business from Japan during last fiscal and plans to enter the Japanese market in a big way by 2008.

The company has filed 30 US DMFs for its APIs and is planning to file some more DMFs during fiscal 2007. The company has 26 ANDAs to its credit till the end of the last fiscal and expect to file additional ANDAs in the current fiscal year. Orchid has already received approvals from the USFDA for Orchid's oral API, Cephalexin, and the sterile API, Cefazolin and expects further approvals for the APIs and formulation products from the US FDA, informed the sources.

As part of its plans to expand operations in the less regulated market, the company entered new markets including South Africa, Oman, Lithuania and Slovakia for supply of APIs in the last three financial years. The company is also engaged in developing new API products to enhance market penetration and price realization, according to the company sources.

Non-Cephalosporin (NPNC) products are another area Orchid plans to strengthen its presence in the coming years. It has a plant at Aurangabad to manufacture NPNC products in API form and another at Irungattukottai to manufacture generic NPNC formulation products. Orchid is also setting up new API and dosage form facilities for larger NPNC production and for entry into carbapenem product group with US FDA compliance.