Panacea Biotec, a Rs.700 crore vaccines major, has managed to reduce its net loss to Rs.62.28 crore during the third quarter ended December 2012 from Rs.71.72 crore in the corresponding quarter of last year. It net sales improved by 8.7 per cent to Rs.166.28 crore from Rs.152.98 crore. Its loss before depreciation, interest and taxation came down to Rs.10.15 crore from Rs.26.83 crore. EPS worked out to negative Rs.10.17 as compared to Rs.11.71 in the last period.

Its vaccines sales increased by 3.1 per cent to Rs.70.89 crore from Rs.68.73 crore and its formulation sales improved by 14.7 per cent to Rs.97.18 crore from Rs.84.70 crore. Its income from research & development amounted to Rs.14.66 crore as against nil in the same period of previous year. It launched three new products viz., Kondro Flex (osteoarthritis), Glzid Total P7.5 (anti diabetic, Epotrust 5000 PFS (renal failure). The company received order from Government of India for supply of Trivalent Oral Polio Vaccines (TOPV) and Bivalent Oral Pollo Vaccine (BOPV) worth Rs.187.61 crore, to be supplied during December 2012 till May 2013. The company launched, for the first time, its product in US by way of launch of Tacrolimuis capsules through its strategic partner Kremers Urban Inc.

The company has invested Rs.3.38 crore towards payment of call money in respect of partly paid shares held in its Indian subsidiary, NewRise Healthcare Pvt Ltd and invested Rs.6 l lakh in Adveta Power Pvt Ltd, a joint venture company. Further, an amount of Rs.28 lakh was remitted to the company subsidiary Rees Investments Ltd Guernsey in terms of existing loan agreement.

Meanwhile, Panacea and its joint venture partner Novartis Vaccines & Diagnostic Srl. Have mutually decided to dissolve their joint venture for marketing of vaccines in India. Accordingly, the JV company, Chiron Panacea Vaccines Pvt Ltd has now stopped selling products. Now each JV partner shall be free to market, distribute and sell any product in India.

For the nine months period ended December 2012, Panacea's net sales declined sharply by 42.2 per cent to Rs.346.05 crore from Rs.598.40 crore in the similar period of last year. Its net loss went up by 66.3 per cent to Rs.147.38 crore from Rs.88.64 crore. Its loss before depreciation, interest and taxation amounted to Rs.42.41 crore as against profit of Rs.30.89 crore. Its vaccines sales declined by 74 per cent to Rs.87.20 crore from Rs.336.05 crore in the same period of last year. However, its formulation sales moved up by 8 per cent to Rs.287.31 crore from Rs.266.14 crore.