India’s Jubilant Life Sciences, Hetero and Cipla have signed licensing deal with US-based Gilead Sciences for manufacturing remdesivir, a drug which has been identified as a potential therapy for Covid-19. The licensing agreement is for India and 127 other low, middle income and upper middle income countries where the Noida-based company will market the drug.
Under the licensing agreements, the companies have a right to receive a technology transfer of the Gilead manufacturing process for remdesivir to enable them to scale up production more quickly, Gilead said in a statement. The company also added that the licensees set their own prices for the generic product they produce. The licenses are royalty-free until the World Health Organization declares the end of the Public Health Emergency of International Concern regarding COVID-19, or until a pharmaceutical product other than remdesivir or a vaccine is approved to treat or prevent COVID-19, whichever is earlier.
“We will be monitoring the clinical trials and regulatory approvals very closely and would be ready to launch the drug shortly after the required regulatory approvals. We also plan to produce the drug’s active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in-house helping its cost effectiveness and consistent availability,” Jubilant Life Sciences chairman Shyam Bhartia and managing director Hari S Bhartia said in a statement.
ET had reported on May 5 that Gilead Sciences was in talks with several Indian companies for a licensing deal.
Jubilant also has the right to receive a technology transfer of Gilead Sciences’ manufacturing process to scale up production to enable expedited access of the medicine to Covid-19 patients upon approvals by regulatory authorities in respective countries.
Remdesivir is one of the most watched drugs for the treatment of coronavirus. In April it received an emergency approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), making it the first authorised therapy for the virus. The USFDA’s approval was based on trial results which showed that the drug reduced the recovery time to five days from 10 days for moderate patients.
Gilead Sciences is in talks with other Indian companies for similar licensing agreements, ET has learnt.
