Bharat Biotech to Become World's Largest Rabies Vaccine Producer Following Acquisition of GSK's Indian Vaccine Unit

Indian vaccine manufacturer Bharat Biotech recently announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Chiron Behring Vaccines Private Limited (CBVPL) from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). Bharat will acquire all shares of CBVPL in an all-cash transaction and plans to fulfill a series of closing conditions with GSK in the coming weeks. It is reported that eight companies participated in the bidding process.

Krishna Ella, Chairman of Bharat Biotech, declined to disclose the financial details of the transaction but stated that the company expects to recoup its investment in the acquisition within five years. The acquisition of Chiron Behring Vaccines Private Limited (CBVPL) will position Bharat Biotech as the world’s largest producer of rabies vaccines. Currently, the company produces 10 million doses of rabies vaccine annually, and its annual production capacity will reach 25 million doses following the completion of the acquisition.

CBVPL, located in Angul, India, joined GSK following the 2015 vaccine-oncology asset swap transaction between GSK and Novartis. The company is a single-product vaccine manufacturer producing Indirab, a Vero cell-based rabies vaccine, with an annual production capacity of 15 million doses. Its revenue in 2018 amounted to INR 1.8 billion (approximately USD 25.2 million). CBVPL represents a very small franchise within GSK’s vaccine portfolio; in 2018, GSK’s total vaccine revenue was GBP 5.9 billion (approximately USD 7.56 billion).

Krishna Ella stated that the acquisition of CBVPL would be used to address the unmet demand for rabies vaccines in India, redirecting 40%-60% of production capacity to meet domestic market needs. Currently, only 50% of the demand for rabies vaccines in India is being met. Bharat Biotech also plans to expand CBVPL's production capacity and broaden market access by registering its products in other high-demand countries.

CBVPL’s products are registered in more than 20 countries and have passed the World Health Organization’s prequalification, which means the company is eligible to supply its rabies vaccine products to United Nations agencies. Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech’s products are currently sold in over 70 countries worldwide.

Globally, the number of vaccine companies is declining. Due to challenging commercial and manufacturing environments, new vaccine manufacturers are unable to enter the industry. GSK currently operates the world’s largest vaccine business and boasts the most extensive portfolio of marketed products, with an additional 14 vaccine candidates in clinical development. However, Krishna Ella has stated that Bharat Biotech aims to have a larger product portfolio than GSK within the next three years. For a vaccine company, it is difficult to survive relying on only a few products.

Bharat Biotech’s Vaccine Pipeline (Source: Bharat Biotech Official Website)

Currently, Bharat Biotech has a portfolio of 16 products, including Japanese encephalitis and typhoid vaccines, and has invested up to 15 billion rupees in manufacturing and R&D facilities to date. In January 2018, its Typbar TCV became the world’s first typhoid conjugate vaccine to receive WHO prequalification. Subsequently, its rotavirus vaccine, Rotavac, also obtained prequalification, offering a more affordable alternative to GSK’s Rotarix and Merck’s RotaTeq.

References

Bharat buys GSK’s Indian vaccine unit to become largest rabies shot producer

http://www.bharatbiotech.com/r&d-pipeline.html

Source: BioExplorer