Granules enters into pact with Greenko ZeroC; to build unit for Rs 2,000 crore in Andhra

Granules India on Tuesday said it entered into a strategic partnership with Greenko ZeroC for green molecule solutions during the drug development process. The pharmaceutical firm also said it would develop a facility at Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh with an estimated cost of Rs 2,000 crore over five years.

According to the statement, both firms would collaborate for green molecule solutions and its wider applications in pharmaceuticals to build a leadership position.

Green chemistry is the design of a chemical process that reduces the use, and creation of, hazardous substances during the drug development process, whilst seeking to minimise the environmental impact of the drug production process in a cost-effective manner.

The company said Greenko ZeroC would supply carbon-free energy and enable green hydrogen, along with its various chemical derivatives. When energy sources are labelled carbon-free, the energy is produced by a resource that generates no carbon emissions.

According to the company's statement, Granules and Greenko ZeroC will develop and promote latest integrated Green Pharmaceutical Zones (GPZ) with its first collaboration in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.

The statement said Granules would build a greenfield facility with an estimated cost of Rs 2,000 crore over five years. The facility, spread over 100 acres, will be built based on sustainability principles for large-scale manufacturing of key starting materials (KSMs), intermediates, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and fermentation-based products.

Krishna Prasad, Chairman and Managing Director, Granules, said "The partnership with Greenko will power our sustainability journey by minimising carbon footprint and impact of our operations on the environment. Sustainability and green chemistry are key pillars of our commitment to heal the planet and people through minimising carbon footprint, adopting resource-efficient processes, and reduce waste across our value chain."

Granules said it envisages to utilise carbon-free energy and green hydrogen derivatives to produce value-added products such as dicyandiamide (DCDA), patient assistance programs (PAP), paracetamol, Metformin, other APIs and intermediates. Granules will also manufacture energy-intensive fermentation-based products at this facility using carbon-free energy.

Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty, CEO and Managing Director, Greenko, said: "We are excited to be partnering with Granules, this innovative and pioneering partnership will propel the transformation of industrial manufacturing to be more sustainable and competitive with technologically superior and green solutions. We believe that we can herald this change in the Global Industrial landscape and this partnership with Granules is enabling such solutions in pharmaceutical industry."

( With inputs from ANI )