Servier invests Euro 40m in new production site in Russia
French group Servier has officially opened a new production centre for branded drugs in Sophyno, near Moscow, following an investment of Euro 40m.
French group Servier has officially opened a new production centre for branded drugs in Sophyno, near Moscow, following an investment of Euro 40m.
From the first half of 2008, the plant will produce all the group's dry forms (tablets) for the Russian market. In four years' time, its production capacity could reach 60 million boxes a year from a workforce of more than 180.
The factory occupies an area of 11,500 m2 and the site is "designed to be able to double its surface area and production capacity in the future", the company said.
The organisational structures and operational procedures (manufacturing and quality assurance standards)" for the site have been strictly modelled on those of the French site at Gidy, near Orleans, and other production sites worldwide, it added.
Servier has an annual turnover in Russia of US$320m (€235m, by integrating the activities of Egis, the Hungarian group in which it has a majority holding) from a Russian pharmaceutical prescription market, where sales grew by 37% to $5.6bn in 2006, according to Russian pharma statistics company RMBC figures.
"In 2006, Servier Russia became the group's leading international arm in terms of turnover, overtaking Italy and Great Britain," the group said, noting that the Russian arm saw its turnover increase by more than 65% in 2006.
Servier is marketing 14 drugs in Russia; these are products of its own research and most of them must be prescribed. It has just made the osteoporosis treatment strontium ranelate and angina treatment ivabradine available there. The group has 18% of the market share in Russia in cardiology, 27% in diabetes, 38% in depression and 66% in chronic venous disease.
Servier's global turnover increased by 16.6% in 2006 to e3.3bn and 82% of its sales were generated outside France.