Shasun Pharma to invest Rs 250 crore in expansion next fiscal

NEW DELHI: Shasun Pharmaceuticals today said it will invest Rs 250 crore in expansion activities, including setting up of new plants, in the next financial year.

"We will invest Rs 250 crore in ongoing expansion plans of the company in FY'13. These include building a manufacturing facility in Vizag and increasing the capacity of existing plants," Shasun Managing Director S Abhaya Kumar told PTI.

While the company plans to raise Rs 200 crore through internal accruals and loans, it has received shareholders approval to raise Rs 50 crore through preferential allotment of shares to Caduceus Asia Mauritius, a subsidiary of US-based healthcare investment firm OrbiMed.

"We will raise the remaining Rs 200 crore through internal accruals and loans," he added.

On being asked about the need for raising the Rs 50 crore by diluting 11.93 per cent stake in the company Kumar said: "This money will also be used for expansion activities. We also wanted to open a strategic door to emerging pharma companies."

As part of raising funds for expansion, the company will allot 65,78,947 equity shares at a price of Rs 76 per share aggregating to Rs 50 crore to Caduceus, Shasun Pharma said in a statement.

"This investment reflects confidence of a global healthcare fund in the fundamentals of Shasun and its prospects," Kumar said.

Commenting on the development, Orbimed Advisors India Managing Director Sunny Sharma said: "Shasun has a long history of partnering with top pharmaceutical companies and achieving leadership position in the products it chooses to focus on."

Shares of Shasun Pharmaceuticals today closed at Rs 84 on BSE, unchanged from its previous close.