Dr Reddy's to buy BASF drug contract manufacturing unit

Drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd has agreed to acquire BASF's drug contract manufacturing business and a related facility in the United States for an undisclosed amount.

The Hyderabad-based company said the deal was likely to be completed by June, subject to regulatory approvals. BASF's contract manufacturing business makes generic prescription and over-the-counter products for branded and generic companies in the United States.

The business had revenue of $43 million in 2007, it said. "The acquisition ... will enable us to strengthen our supply chain for North America and provide a strong platform for pursuing additional growth opportunities," Satish Reddy, managing director of Dr Reddy's, said in the statement.

Wipro set to acquire German firm

Wipro Technologies, an information technology and outsourcing company, is poised to acquire the IT arm of a major company in Germany.The company has initiated talks with potential targets in Germany, even though the names were kept under wraps.

All major companies — BMW, Lufthansa, BASF and Siemens — have captive IT organisations in Germany.While automobile major BMW has an IT subsidiary, Softlab, with SAP capabilities, German airline major Lufthansa runs Lufthansa Systems, the third biggest IT vendor in Germany. BASF’s IT services division and a host of small companies could also be on the Indian IT major’s radar.

According to industry sources, the Bangalore-based company is increasing its presence in Germany and is looking at both organic and inorganic growth in the country.The company is looking at increasing its presence in enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions, captive customer base and data centre applications.

Acquiring a company with these capabilities would be the fastest way to establish a presence in the country, the sources added.

Earlier, Wipro Chairman Azim Premji had stated that the company would look at acquisitions in Europe, especially in the UK, Germany and France.The company is on the lookout for acquisition that would help it gain a presence in the continent and embark on a much faster growth rate.

A strong presence in Germany will enable Wipro to tap the biggest ERP market in the world and enable it to tap one of the virgin markets for outsourcing of IT services. At present, German major SAP is the leading ERP solutions provider in the world.