Beximco Pharmaceuticals announced the creation of a joint venture with BioCare Manufacturing based in Malaysia.

Beximco Pharma will provide full technical support to BioCare to establish manufacturing facilities at Seri Iskandar Pharmaceutical Park in Malaysia to produce pharmaceutical products.

Beximco will own 30 percent of the equity shares in the company while BioCare will operate and fund the facility, Beximco Pharma said in a statement yesterday.

"This is our first overseas manufacturing collaboration,” said Nazmul Hassan, managing director of Beximco Pharma.

“I believe our joint venture with BioCare will help address the unmet needs of patients and physicians by supporting the Malaysian government's initiative to promote the local pharmaceutical industry.” “This kind of collaboration is also in line with our aspiration to continue to strengthen our global presence as a generic pharmaceutical company,” Hassan said.

In the first phase of the project, a metered dose inhaler facility has been created and has received endorsement from Malaysia's health ministry for good manufacturing practices.

Beximco Pharma expects the joint venture's first sales from the facility will be made during 2017, according to the statement. The company does not expect a significant contribution to its profits from the collaboration in the short term, Beximco said.

“However, the JV is an important testimony of the company's technical capability as a generic drug manufacturer.” The company plans to manufacture and supply medical products, such as inhalers, under the Malaysian government's economic transformation programme.

The Malaysian government's initiatives are aimed at increasing investment in the country's pharmaceutical industry to provide dedicated drug manufacturing facilities, improve generic drug capabilities and promote local production to qualify for government procurement.

BioCare Group, the majority shareholder of BioCare, has a strong presence in key therapeutic segments in both government and private healthcare sectors in Malaysia.

Beximco is one of the largest exporters of drugs from Bangladesh, with footprints in more than 50 countries. It exported medicines worth $15 million in 2015-16.

Its net profit stood at Tk 195.42 crore in 2015, up from Tk 152.83 crore in the previous year.

Each share of Beximco Pharma traded between Tk 86.5 and Tk 87.9, before closing at Tk 87.2 on the Dhaka Stock Exchange yesterday.

Sponsors hold a 13.18 percent stake in Beximco Pharmaceuticals, institutions 28.84 percent, foreign investors 38.31 percent and general investors 19.67 percent, according to the DSE data.