Next step towards generics, Pfizer teams with Strides

Under the deal, Pfizer’s existing products unit will sell as many as 40 additional off-patent sterile injectables and oral solid dose drugs supplied to it by Strides and its Onco Laboratories joint-venture Aspen Pharmacare.

The collaboration, the third major agreement Pfizer has signed with an Indian generics firm after its deals with Aurobindo Pharma and Claris Lifesciences last year​, fits with the general trend of Big Pharma investment in the non-branded drug sector.

For example, in 2009 Sanofi Aventis acquired Laboratorios Kendrick and Medley, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) bought shares in Aspen Pharmacare and Novartis​ purchased Ebewe Pharma’s non-branded injectables unit.

Collaboration with a point: injectables​

However, Pfizer’s tie-up with Strides, financial terms of which have not been disclosed, is more of a targeted move than some recent partnerships, according to existing products unit president David Simmons.

He told Reuters​ that a key motivation for the Strides deal is Pfizer’s desire to expand in the US generic injectable drug market, which he valued at around $11bn (€6.2bn) a year.

Simmons explained that Pfizer looked at many companies before selecting Strides as a partner and went on to describe the Bangalore-based firm as a “powerhouse in the sterile injectables area​."

Arun Kumar, Strides’ managing director, was similarly enthusiastic about the new agreement, explaining that Pfizer's infrastructure will help his firm reach a larger number of customers than had been possible before.

“We have established a reputation for efficient formulation development and technologies, manufacturing and operational flexibility and we are looking to brining these strengths to bear in our collaboration with Pfizer.”​

More Big Pharma deals for Strides​

Kumar also suggested that the partnership with Pfizer may be just the start of the Indian firm’s Big Pharma generics collaborations.

He told Dow Jones Newswire that: "We believe that there will be many more partnerships going forward, with Pfizer, with GlaxoSmithKline and many other companies that are looking to expand their portfolio of products​."