Pfizer invests in Indonesian solid dose facility
The Pfizer Global Supply (PGS) facility in East Jakarta manufactures formulated drugs for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, inflammation, infectious diseases and analgesics, and primarily serves the Indonesian market.
The pharma giant is set to increase production of its solid oral dose products, spokesperson Allyanna Anglim told in-Pharmatechnologist.com, in order to bolster supply both locally and in Southeast Asia.
“With a total investment of IDR 40 billion [$3.52m], this factory expansion will increase the production capacity of solid oral dose products by 76%, or from 170 million tablets to 300 million tablets per year,” she said.
“Currently, the PGS factory distributes 80% of its products to the Indonesian market and 20% is exported to various countries in Asia, including South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore,” she added.
“This plant expansion will reinforce this commitment through the provision of quality and innovative products to meet the healthcare needs of our patients in Indonesia and the rest of Asia.”
Indonesia
Whilst Singapore has fast become the focus of a number of multinational pharma firms within Southeast Asia, especially in biologics, Indonesia was described as a “potentially very lucrative market” by managing director of Malaysia-based pharma firm Pharmaniagia Dato Farshila Emran in 2012.
During talks to acquire a $10m API plant in the country, he told this publication: “Indonesia is the only country among pharmerging countries that has registered double digit growth [14% growth from 2009 to 2011] in the pharmaceutical sectors.”
Last August, Germany-headquartered drugmaker Fresenius Kabi staked its place in the market it expects to be worth over $9.5bn by 2018, acquiring a 51% share of local firm Ethica Industri Farmasi.
The world’s largest clinical research organisation, Quintiles, also entered the region in 2011 and expanded its presence the following year in a partnership with Indonesian firm Prodia, citing – amongst other factors – the country’s 240 million strong population, ethnic diversity and growing incidence of infectious and non-communicable diseases.
