Tehran, Iran, Nov. 5
By Mehdi Sepahvand – Trend:
A prospective drug production joint venture between Iran and Azerbaijan, called Caspian Pharmed, will greatly benefit the whole region, according to Iran’s deputy health minister and head of Food and Drug Organization.
The construction of the factory is well underway and is supposed to be complete in about one year, Gholamreza Asqari told Trend.
The construction of the factory started in early 2017 near Baku, Azerbaijan. Iran holds 49 percent of the joint venture’s share. The project is worth $21 million.
In its first phase of operation, Caspian Pharmed will produce 84 types of drugs for cardiovascular, neurological, and viral diseases, as well as allergy drugs and supplements. The products are meant to be exported to a number of regional countries, including Russia, Georgia, and Kazakhstan.
Elsewhere in the interview, the deputy minister said Iran has recently produced a series of biosimilar drugs using the latest technology.
A biosimilar is a biologic medical product which is almost an identical copy of an original product that is manufactured by a different company. Biosimilars are officially approved versions of original "innovator" products, and can be manufactured when the original product's patent expires.
"Biosimilars are highly effective drugs in pharmaceutical terms. Not many countries possess the technology to produce them. We are hopeful to be producing more of such drugs in the near future," Asqari said.