JV pact for vaccine plant

Kathmandu, Sep 19, 2010.

Him Electronics and Hester Biosciences of India have entered into a joint venture agreement to set up a plant to manufacture animal vaccines in Nepal, the first of its kind in the country. Him Electronics and Hester Biosciences signed the accord on Sunday in Kathmandu.

Hester Biosciences has a 65 percent stake in the proposed company—Hester Bioscience Nepal—with the rest being held by Him Electronics. The total cost of the project is Rs. 250 million.

Hester Bioscience Nepal will manufacture a range of poultry, sheep, cattle and swine vaccines for the Nepali and world markets at its factory to be set up at Panchkhal in Kavrepalanchok.

“We have been aiming to enter this sector for a long time," said Shekhar Golchha, managing director of Him Electronics. “Our dream has materialised with the tie-up with Hester."

Hester Biosciences is the second largest player in the poultry vaccines market in India with a market share of around 35 percent. The joint project with Him Electronics is its first venture outside India.

So far, Hester Biosciences has been manufacturing only poultry vaccines with an annual production capacity of 4.8 billion doses. It has 11 types of live and 28 types of inactivated poultry vaccines.

Rajiv Gandhi, chief executive officer of Hester Biosciences, said that they were looking at joint ventures in emerging markets to expand their product portfolio. “The whole thing materialised within two months," added Gandhi.

Ahmedabad-based Hester Biosciences has been manufacturing poultry vaccines since 1997. Listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, it has an annual turnover of Rs. 600 million.

The Him Electronics-Hester Biosciences joint venture is expected to start production by 2012 and will give employment to 200 Nepalis. “We’ll produce 2.5 billion doses of animal vaccines from the Nepal plant," said Gandhi. “We are expecting to manufacture 15-20 vaccines here in Nepal."

Hester Bioscience Nepal, according to its promoters, will have an annual turnover of between Rs. 500 million to Rs. 700 million.