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Competition leads to increased production
January 29, 2004
Competition in the pharmaceutical drug arena
will trigger manufacturing in Puerto Rico. Canovanas’
AstraZeneca IPR Pharmaceuticals has a strong
contender in the so-called cholesterol drug-treatment
war for 2004 with its new product, Crestor,
which has sold approximately $140 million since
its introduction in August 2003.
It still has a long way to go before catching
up to giant competitor Lipitor, manufactured
by Pfizer Inc. in Vega Baja, which was predicted
to sell $9.1 billion in 2003. Given, however,
that Crestor’s treatment costs less than
Lipitor’s ($770 vs. $850 annually) and
has been proved to lower bad cholesterol and
raise good cholesterol more effectively, the
company predicts sales could reach $3 billion
of the $12.5 billion market.
Pfizer’s erectile
dysfunction drug Viagra, which had already
taken an enormous hit with competition from
other treatments such as Glaxo SmithKline’s
Levitra, now faces Eli Lilly’s Cialis.
While Viagra’s
effects last a little over four hours, Cialis
claims up to 36 hours. And though both drugs
costs less than $10 and annual sales for Viagra
are expected to reach $1.7 billion, Cialis expects
a respectable $272 million during its first
year—not bad for a newcomer.
During a visit to Puerto Rico last year, J.
Patrick Kelly, vice president of Pfizer Inc.
and president of the company’s U.S. Pharmaceuticals
Group, said Pfizer’s six manufacturing
operations on the island would probably produce
the company’s new products, upward of
10 new launches expected by 2005. While rumors
persist that at least one pharmaceutical operation
will be sold, the company’s production
output from the island will remain significant.
While Schering-Plough’s Zetia, a new
cholesterol-lowering treatment, resulted in
40 new jobs and unspecified continuing investment
in expansion and equipment at the company’s
Las Piedras’ operation, the product’s
effectiveness depends on its shared use with
Merck’s Zocor, whose patent expires in
2006. Zetia also faces competition from several
pharmaceutical drugs manufactured on the island,
including Crestor, Lipitor, and Pravachol.
San German’s Baxter Healthcare / Fenwald
Division, meanwhile, invested $90 million in
equipment and machinery to produce the Intercept
Blood System for platelets, which will double
the plant’s work force of 600 as the operation
reaches full production.
source:-http://www.puertorico-herald.org
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