Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (Orchid) achieved a turnover and operating income of Rs 239.32 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2005 (Q2 FY 2005-06) in comparison to Rs 163.77 crore registered during the corresponding quarter of last fiscal.

Gross profit before interest and depreciation stood at Rs 74.88 crore compared to Rs 42.10 crore registered during the corresponding quarter of last year. Profit before tax was Rs 29.47 crore as against Rs 7.66 crore of the corresponding Q2 of last fiscal. Net profit after tax increased substantially by 587% to Rs 27.22 crore compared to Rs 3.96 crore of the corresponding Q2 of last fiscal.

According to a company release, launch of Orchid’s Ceftriaxone injectable generic product in the US market which quickly garnered a leading market position contributed to a dominant share of additional turnover and profits. The regulated market business has also led to an exceptionally high level of EBITDA at 31% of the Q2 turnover, further reinforcing Orchid’s leading performance in operating profitability in the industry.

“The second quarter (Q2 FY 05-06) has witnessed a very impressive start to our US generics business, triggering a step-function increase in our quarterly revenues and profitability. In particular, we have been able to achieve a very robust market position in the generic Ceftriaxone segment upon our entry after patent expiry based on USFDA approval of our ANDA. With the planned introduction of two more key generic cephalosporin formulations during this fiscal, one of which is again a product which will go off-patent in December 2005, we are confident of accelerating our generics performance. We anticipate sustainable and strong revenue growth coupled with more than proportionate profitability increase during this fiscal”, said K Raghavendra Rao, Managing Director, Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

Orchid’s core cephalosporin API business registered a turnover of Rs 181.10 crore (Rs 140.85 crore) for the quarter ended September 30, 2005. The company while maintaining its global leadership position in the Cephalosporin API segment, has been able to garner major business opportunities in regulated markets of US and Europe for a lyophilized product based on its unique USFDA approved supply position.