India's Pharma Majors See Huge HCQ Export Potential, an Industrial Info Market Brief

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India's leading pharmaceutical companies, including Zydus Cadila and Ipca Laboratories, have started increasing production of the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), which has been touted by U.S. President Donald Trump and others as a potential treatment for COVID-19. To date, the drug has been known for its anti-malarial and anti-rheumatic applications, but its status in regards to COVID-19 remains a topic of debate among health professionals.

India's production of HCQ is expected to leapfrog to 10 times its current capacity of 4 tonnes per month by the end of April. This means an increase in monthly production from 20 million tablets to 200 million tablets of 200 mg each, which then will be scaled up to 350 million doses per month.

It is estimated that India's domestic need is unlikely to exceed 100 million doses, thus leaving a huge volume available for export. Many existing sites producing HCQ formulations are likely to be upgraded or expanded to meet growing global demand.

Click here for a list of active HCQ projects in India, and see map below.