Baku, Azerbaijan, March 14
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
A Swiss Pharmaceutical company has signed an agreement with one of the largest pharmaceutical holding companies in Iran to produce hormone medicines.
Based on the agreement which was signed between the Swiss multinational Chemo company and Iran's Barakat Pharmend Investment Company, the Swiss company will undertake 65 percent of the investment for the joint venture in Iran, the IRIB news agency reported March 14.
At list 20 types of hormone medicines worth $15 million will be produced in the first phase of the project.
Mehdi Pirsalehi, the director general of Drug and Medicine Organization of Iran's health ministry said on the sideline of agreement signing ceremony that various foreign companies have held talks with Iran for investment in pharmaceutical sector in recent months.
Iran can become region's pharmaceutical hub with attracting foreign investments, Pirsalehi said, adding talks are underway with AstraZeneca(British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biologics company) and Novo Nordisk (Danish multinational pharmaceutical company)companies.
The two firms are expected to invest in Iran's pharmaceutical industry, the official said.
Last year head of the association of Iran-Swiss mutual investment announced that, well-known Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis is mulling investment in Iran.
The company has examined capacities of Iranian market and decided to make investment in Iran.
Novartis is a multinational company based in Basel, Switzerland and is one of the biggest pharmaceutical corporations.
Iran has managed to produce some of the drugs whose imports have been restricted due to sanctions.
Iran's medicine export is expected to reach $300 million in the current Iranian fiscal year, which began in March 21, 2015, said Abdorrasoul Dinarvand, the Iranian deputy health minister.
Last year, the country exported $185 million of medicine, he said, adding that medicine exports will surge to $500 million over the next three years.
Iran plans to raise its exports of life-saving drugs to $1.5 billion in a decade's time, Iran's Health Minister Hassan Ghazizadeh Hashemi announced last year.