Turkey to become Sanofi generics unit Zentiva's R&D base

Czech Republic-headquartered Zentiva, the generics arm of French drug major Sanofi (Euronext: SAN), has picked Turkey as the location to develop, produce and export generic drugs to the world, according to Invest in Turkey.

Sanofi recently announced that Zentiva is to be the unifying brand for its European generics operations (The Pharma Letter April 5). By unifying the group’s generic activities under the Zentiva brand Sanofi-Aventis says it has created the third largest generics company in the European market and, more importantly, the fastest growing. The group’s total sales of generic drugs were 1.53 billion euros ($2.17 billion) in 2010.

Zentiva’s pharmaceutical plant in Luleburgaz, Kirklareli, is currently one of the three biggest R&D labs of the Sanofi group. Established by Turkish pharmaceutical company Eczacibasi, the Luleburgaz-based generic drugs business was acquired by Zentiva in 2007, which itself later became part of French Sanofi-Aventis. Zentiva plans to develop 15 new medicines per year in Luleburgaz, according to Zentiva chief executive Rob Koremans, with an average annual investment of around $6.1 million. “The Turkish government’s efforts to improve access to healthcare services are encouraging,” said Mr Koremans in a press meeting held at Zentiva headquarters in Prague, the Czech Republic.