Focus more towards CRAMS biz: Lupin

Excerpts from Markets Midday on CNBC-TV18 Watch the full show » ALSO READ See latest News about Lupin See previous management interviews See what other Experts & Brokerages are saying about Lupin Lupin BSE | NSE 08/02/12 Are Mutual Funds betting on Lupin?

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Kamal K Sharma , MD, Lupin, said international revenues account for 60% of total revenues. Going forward, Lupin expects a growth rate of 30% and is looking to focus more on its Contract Research and Manufacturing Services, or CRAMS, business, he said.

According to Sharma, the market share of Lisinopril in UK is 37% and Suprax will continue to grow at 45%.

 

Excerpts from CNBC-TV18's exclusive interview with Kamal K Sharma:

Q: You booked significant revenue on your income front, on account of an IPR sale to the Laboratory Services of France. Are there any such particular incomes in the pipeline for the rest of FY08 and perhaps looking into FY09 as well?

A: I cannot talk about the rest of the financial year but certainly research is like our regular business. So, we can hope for a lot more IPR income in the future too. 

Q: What about the export part of the business? That grew by over 100% for this particular quarter. How are you seeing the export part of the business growing and its contribution to margins, as you approach the next financial year?

A: As part of our strategy, we were always keen to improve the mix of our business which means that we should have more international business and we should have higher value-added business i.e. finished dosage. You would notice that over time both these factors have been moving in a positive direction.

 

Finished dosages now accounts for 75% of the business revenues, which was almost 45% four-years ago. Likewise, our international business is about 60% now and the domestic business is 40%. We certainly feel that because the prices are good in overseas markets, this is also a harbinger for better margins in the future.

 

Q: What are the growth drivers for the next 12-months? What kind of revenue growth are you looking at from hereon?

 

A: We hope to continue at about 30%. We hope to grow in the same way in the future too. Growth would come out of the domestic market and the overseas market.

 

Fortunately, our growth is all encompassing. It is not something where only one sector of our business is growing. I see that trend continuing in the future too.      

 

Q: Are you seriously looking at approaching the CRAMS business?

 

A: Yes, we are indeed. One of the acquisitions made in Q2 of this year was Rubamin Laboratories, which was primarily done to enhance our foray into CRAMS. We have been doing CRAMS over the last couple of years. But this is going to give us extra capacity and a certain contact base for business in the future.

 

Q: Are there any more acquisitions lined up?

 

A: This is something, which is part of our regular strategy. A certain part of our growth has to come out of inorganic interventions. That would mean there would be acquisitions, like the one we did in Kyowa, Japan.

 

Our acquisition would be determined by the interest in geography as well as technology.

 

Q: I want to ask you about Suprax as well as Lisinopril in the UK market. What is the current market share that you have been able to acquire in Q3?

 

A: Our overall market share in Lisinopril is upward of 37% and we are the market leader. The market share is between 37-40% in Lisinopril.

 

Suprax has recorded very good growth and the season is still on. Suprax is a seasonal product because it caters heavily to the flu season. One quarter of flu season is over and another quarter is still on. This season generally lasts till March. We should grow the business by at least 45%, as far as Suprax is concerned.