Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc., USA [GPI], the wholly owned subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. signed a supply and marketing agreement with Aspen USA, Inc. for the joint manufacturing and marketing of three generic controlled-substance pharmaceutical products for the US market. These solid-dose formulation products, which target the pain management therapeutic segment, have a cumulative market size of about USD 44 million and have limited competition.

In accordance with the agreement, Aspen will supply the products to GPI, which will market them under the Glenmark label. Glenmark expects to launch these products over a three-month period starting May 2006. The company will pay out an initial milestone to Aspen in order to get exclusive marketing rights to the products, which will be sold across retail as well as hospital segments. The two parties will share the profits on net sales in the US market, stated a release.

Glenn Saldanha, Managing Director and CEO of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals stated, "Our deal with Aspen along with the recent deal with Lehigh Valley Technologies, Inc. (LVT) will provide our US operations a head-start in establishing a US franchise in the less competitive space of controlled drug substances. It will also significantly add to the six products that we currently have in market and will go a long way in strengthening our generics presence in the US. We are also expecting approvals for an additional 2-4 ANDAs filed by Glenmark shortly and are targeting to close FY 2007 with at least 18-24 generics on the US market."

Terrance Coughlin, President of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc., USA remarked, "The Aspen collaboration will complement the liquid controlled substance agreement that we have with LVT and will enable us to diversify our product offering in the US."

The last in-licensing agreement was announced a week ago with Lehigh Valley Technologies, Inc. (LVT) for 2 liquid controlled drug substances. In addition, the company has also concluded deals with InvaGen Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Shasun Chemicals and Drugs Ltd., for the joint development and marketing of seven and thirteen generic products respectively for the US market. Earlier in 2005, Glenmark had launched its sales and marketing front-end by in-licensing two generic products, Naproxen and Nitroglycerin, from two US based manufacturers Interpharm, Inc. and Konec, Inc. respectively. The company followed it up with an exclusive licensing agreement with InvaGen for marketing its anti-hypertensive product, Fosinopril Sodium. Glenmark also received US FDA approvals for two generic ANDAs, Fluconazole and Zonisamide, and has commenced marketing the products.

The company closed FY 2006 with a portfolio of 17 ANDAs filed with the US FDA; the company's partners have filed 3 ANDAs till date. Glenmark had also purchased 2 ANDAs from Clonmel Healthcare Ltd. in FY 2005. The company's formulation (solid dose) manufacturing site at Goa was inspected by the US FDA in FY 2006 and has been approved, said the release.