Hyderabad: Industries Minister K. Tarakarama Rao on Monday unveiled the foundation for a new vaccines plant being constructed by Biological E. Limited (BE) in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Genome Valley in Kolthur Village, located on the outskirts of Hyderabad.
The Minister was accompanied by Johnson & Johnson (J&J) Pharmaceuticals Worldwide Chairman Dr. Paul Stoffels, BE Managing Director Mahima Datla, IT Secretary Jayesh Ranjan, , Indian Council of Medical Research Director-General Soumya Swaminathan and Medchal MLA M. Sudheer Reddy at the inaugural event of laying the foundation.
Addressing the gathering on this occasion, the Minister appreciated the expansion efforts of Biological E. Limited in being aligned with the State Government’s vision of industrial expansion,
creation of employment and the commitment to make Hyderabad an industrial hub in India and thus realise the dream of Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao – the creation of Bangaru (/Golden) Telangana.
He fondly recalled that BE, as one of the foremost Pharmaceutical & Biologics Companies in India, being based out of the State of Telangana, in addition to substantial exports of vaccines, contributes significantly to the Universal Immunization Programme launched by the Government of India.
Welcoming the gathering, Mahima Datla appreciated the efforts of the Government of Telangana for helping the investors and entrepreneurs in setting up new ventures and industries and creating a conducive environment for smooth execution of business operations.
Mahima Datla informed that the BE is planning an initial investment of up to Rs. 300 crore in this new plant, which would help the existing vaccines plant augment the production and manufacture new products that are in the pipeline.
This investment is in line with and part of the already earmarked overall outlay of Rs. 1000 crore in the Genome Valley across BE’s Vaccines & Pharma businesses that are underway.
The construction of this new SEZ vaccines plant on about 29 acres of land would be completed by April 2018 and commercial production is expected to begin by December 2019.
Mahima also said that by the time BE’s expansion initiatives in the Genome Valley are completed, an additional employment opportunity for around 1000 people would be generated. (INN)