Nicholas Piramal-Rhone merger over

Mumbai: Nicholas Piramal India Ltd (NPIL) has completed its merger with Rhone Poulenc India Ltd (RPIL), after the Bombay High Court sanctioned the merger between the two pharma companies that had began in December 2000.

As per ORG data, the merged company, when assessed together with its joint ventures and subsidiaries, would be the second-largest pharmaceutical group in India, an NPIL statement issued here said.

According to the plan, the company has effected the closure of RPIL's Bhandup plant and offered a VRS package to its workers in a bid to achieve long-term cost benefit to NPIL. “We are putting in place major plans to emerge as one of the most focused, cost-effective and leading research pharma companies in the country. These initiatives would now render the company an ideal launch pad for new products," NPIL chairman Ajay Piramal said in the statement.

NPIL COO and executive director Vijay Shah said the company has chalked out a strategy to optimise the benefits of the merger, including the integration of the CFAs and depots, while allowing the marketing and sales functions to operate independently, which would ensure the optimisation of the complementary strengths created by the brand portfolio of the two companies with presence across a wide range of therapeutic segments. The leading brands from NPIL's stable include Phensedyl, Gardenal, Phenegran, Tixylix and Flagyl.

The merger process started when NPIL acquired Aventis pharma's equity stake in drug major, Rhone Poulenc, in December 2000 and reached its logical conclusion with the Bombay High Court's approval.