Kemwell clinches Pfizer's Swedish manufacturing unit

New Delhi, Feb 22 (UNI) Bangalore-based Kemwell Pvt Ltd has acquired global pharma major Pfizer Inc's manufacturing plant in Uppsala, Sweden, that manufactures both API and unfinished drugs, for an undisclosed sum.

Kemwell, one of India's largest contract manufacturer, is the first in this category to opt for overseas acquisitions and won the deal amid stiff competition.

As part of the deal, the Indian company will continue to manufacture the anti-inflammatory drug Salazopyrine produced at the Uppsala plant for treatment of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

The production facility located at Bolanderna in Uppsala, Sweden, has received approval from USFDA, EMEA and Japan's regulatory authority and supplies to 80 markets including the US, Europe and Japan.

Kemwell was chosen by Pfizer Inc, the world's largest research-based based in New York, USA, for its long-term commitment to remain in Bolanderna and retain the plant's 170 employees, a company release here said.

Pfizer Health AB CEO Zeibrant Lindqvist in a statement said "By selling the production facility, we believe that the plant and jobs will remain in the region." Kemwell Pvt Ltd is a leading formulations contract manufacturer for multinational and Indian pharmaceutical companies for more than two decades now.

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