GSK, Pfizer joint venture to start manufacturing ops in Russia
pharmafile | November 4, 2011 | News story | Manufacturing and Production | GSK, Pfizer, manufacturing
A joint venture set up by GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer is planning to start manufacturing in Russia thanks to a partnership with local drugmaker JSC Binnopharm.
The JV – called ViiV – was set up in 2009 with rights to the existing HIV treatment portfolios of GSK and Pfizer, and rights of first refusal on any new compounds coming through development.
A new manufacturing agreement with JSC Binnopharm will kick-off with the local secondary manufacturing of ViiV’s antiretroviral products, initially focusing on secondary packaging operations which will get underway in early 2012, said Binnopharm in a press release.
ViiV would supply bulk drug materials to Binnopharm for packaging, focusing initially on its Combivir (lamivudine and zidovudine), Kivexa (abacavir sulfate and lamivudine) and Epivir (lamivudine) brands. Once up and running, the manufacturing alliance would allow up to 70% of HIV-positive patients in Russia would be treated with domestically-produced medicines.
The agreement also ties in with ongoing efforts by multinational drugmakers to build up manufacturing capacity in Russia in the face of government plans to give preference to locally-made medicines in the national reimbursement system and reduce the country’s reliance on imports.
GSK started working with Binnopharm last year when it entered into an alliance for the secondary manufacture in Russia of a number of its vaccine products, including Cervarix for cervical cancer, Rotarix for rotavirus and pneumococcal vaccine Synflorix.
The Russian company is also manufacturing products for other foreign firms, including Belgium’s UCB, at its 32,000 sq. m. facility in Zelenograd, near Moscow. Binnopharm says the unit is the largest GMP standard biopharmaceutical plant in Russia and can produce tablets, capsules, ampoules, sprays, aerosols.
Phil Taylor
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