Biocon ties up with Tabuk Pharmaceuticals to commercialise speciality medicines in Middle East

Biotechnology major Biocon on Tuesday said it has inked a pact with Saudi Arabia-based drug firm Tabuk Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Company to commercialise select speciality products in the Middle East region.

Tabuk Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Company is a fully-owned subsidiary of Astra Industrial Group, a leading pharmaceutical company in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Under the terms of this agreement, Tabuk Pharmaceuticals will hold the marketing authorisation for select speciality products of Biocon and be responsible to register, importing, and promoting them in Saudi Arabia and other Middle East countries.

As part of the out-licensing deal with Tabuk, Biocon will develop and manufacture the products, and Tabuk will commercialise them, the biotechnology company said in a statement.

"Our partnership with Tabuk Pharmaceuticals is another significant step, as we continue to expand our global presence with our portfolio of high quality and vertically-integrated generic formulations to address unmet medical needs," Biocon CEO and MD Siddharth Mittal noted.

The partnership will pave the way for Biocon's expansion into the MENA region to include Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Iraq, in addition to Jordan and Lebanon, according to the statement.

"As part of our role and mission at Tabuk Pharmaceuticals to deliver unique health solutions and enhance the well-being of people in Saudi Arabia and countries we operate in, our partnership with as distinguished and renowned a company as Biocon, comes in as an evident choice to further support our mission in line with Saudi Vision 2030, regarding localising speciality and value-added pharmaceutical products," Astra Industrial Group President Mohammed Alhagbani stated.

The company is driven by its purpose to enhance global healthcare through high quality and affordable biopharmaceuticals, he added.

"We are leveraging advanced science, innovative tech platforms and international research collaborations to develop therapies that can lower treatment costs, increase access and improve healthcare outcomes," Alhagbani said.

Tabuk Pharmaceuticals develops, manufactures, markets and distributes various branded generics, in addition to manufacturing pharmaceutical products for international partners at its manufacturing sites in Saudi Arabia.

The company currently has a presence in 17 countries in the Middle East and Africa.