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RPG Life Sciences plans to deploy Rs. 500 crore over the next 12 months to expand its manufacturing footprint and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) business through acquisitions. The investment forms part of a Rs. 700 crore capital commitment as the drugmaker works toward expanding its domestic and international operations.
Managing Director Ashok Nair said the company has already completed acquisitions worth about Rs. 200 crore. It is now assessing additional assets that could add manufacturing capacity and strengthen its API operations.
RPG Life Sciences plans to use the remaining Rs. 500 crore of its committed capital for new acquisitions over the coming year. The company is looking for assets that can support its manufacturing network and future growth plans.
"Currently, the acquisitions we have made are to the tune of Rs. 200 crore. We are evaluating opportunities that can strengthen our manufacturing footprint. We would like to deploy the Rs. 500 crore balance in the next 12 months. We are actively pursuing good assets," Nair said.
The company operates in domestic formulations, international formulations and APIs. It has also set a revenue target of Rs. 2,000 crore to Rs. 2,500 crore by 2030 as it expands across these businesses.
RPG Life Sciences started FY27 with 16% revenue growth during the first quarter. EBITDA grew 18%, while the EBITDA margin rose to 24.5% from 24.1% in the comparable period.
Domestic formulations currently account for about 70% of RPG Life Sciences' total business. According to Nair, the segment has been growing at 16% to 17%, which is around 1.5 times the wider market growth rate.
"Our domestic formulation business is around 70 per cent of our total, where we are growing at 16 to 17 per cent -- almost 1.5 times faster than the market. Going forward, we would like to see API have a big play," he said.
The company sees APIs as an important part of its expansion plan. The Indian API market is valued at more than Rs. 1 lakh crore and is growing at about 8%, according to figures cited by the company. India is also the world's third-largest API producer and manufactures more than 500 APIs.
Therefore, acquisitions that expand manufacturing and API capacity could support RPG Life Sciences as it works toward its 2030 revenue target.
In India, RPG Life Sciences is focusing on speciality areas such as nephrology, rheumatology, cardiology and urology. The company is also working to expand sales of established medicines that are commonly referenced in medical education.
It currently has six such ‘textbook brands’, including Naprocin, Aldactone and Norpace. Nair said the company plans to extend the commercial life of these products by introducing additional product lines and increasing awareness.
"We have six textbook brands, which are like hidden gems for us. For example, Norpace is now growing at 54 per cent through diagnosis and awareness campaigns. We are looking at how to increase the life cycle of these brands with new line extensions," he said.
The strategy allows the company to build on existing brands while continuing to develop its speciality medicine portfolio.
RPG Life Sciences currently operates in more than 60 countries outside the United States. The company is also entering markets in West Africa and Saudi Arabia as it expands its international formulations business.
Meanwhile, the drugmaker is tracking the growing market for GLP-1 therapies used for obesity treatment. Nair described the sector as a ‘revolution still in its early chapters.’
He expects India's obesity treatment market for GLP-1 therapies to reach about Rs. 4,000 crore within the next three to four years. The company continues to assess the segment alongside its broader plans for formulations, APIs and manufacturing expansion.
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