CIBA INDIAN COLLABORATION

Hindustan Ciba-Geigy, the Indian affiliate of Switzerland's Ciba, and Chong Kun Dang Corporation, a Korean pharmaceutical firm, have signed a joint venture agreement to establish a production plant in India for the antituberculosis drug rifampicin.

The investment commitment is expected to be around $30 million, with the plant planned to be fully operationally by the beginning of 1997. The plant is anticipated to have a capacity of 125 tonnes per year, all of which will be used to supply the local Indian market which is increasing by 20% each year.

"The building of a rifampicin production plant in India will ensure a supply of high quality product in an area where it is especially in demand," said Choong Whan Kim, president of CKD. Ciba noted that the domestic production of the drug in India will ensure that the product is cheap enough to be afforded by a wider proportion of the community.