Granules forges strategic partnership with Greenko ZeroC for Kakinada plant

Drug maker Granules India on Tuesday said that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Greenko ZeroC to develop and promote carbon-free energy and green molecule solutions.

According to the company’s statement, the firm entered into the partnership to “collaborate for Green Molecule Solutions and its wider applications in pharmaceuticals to build a leadership position in sustainability and circular economy initiatives and be a pioneer in the industry.”

In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, the companies will be developing and promoting “state-of-the-art Integrated Green Pharmaceutical Zones (GPZ)” in Andhra Pradesh’s Kakinada. The facility would be spread across 100 acres for the project with an estimated cost of approximately Rs 2,000 crore over five years.

Granules informed that it will be building a green field facility based on sustainability principles for large-scale manufacturing of key starting materials (KSMs), Intermediates, APIs and fermentation-based products.

Under the collaboration, Greenko ZeroC will be supplying carbon-free energy and enable green hydrogen along with its various chemical derivatives. Granules plans to utilise them to produce value-added products such as DCDA, PAP, Paracetamol, Metformin, other APIs, and Intermediates.

“Granules will also manufacture energy-intensive fermentation-based products at this facility using carbon-free energy. This collaboration allows utilization of Fungible Carbon Offset instruments across Granules global manufacturing locations,” the company said.

Commenting on the partnership, the Chairman and Managing Director of Granules Dr Krishna Prasad said that it will power Granules’ sustainability journey by minimizing carbon footprint and impact of their operations on the environment.

“Sustainability and green chemistry are key pillars of our commitment to heal the planet and people through minimizing carbon footprint, adopting resource-efficient processes, and reduce waste across our value chain,” he added.

Greenko CEO and Managing Director Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty called the collaboration an innovative and pioneering one, which “will propel the transformation of industrial manufacturing to be more sustainable and competitive with technologically superior and green solutions.”

“Such partnerships will enable PM Modi Ji’s vision of India’s leadership in the global efforts to combat Climate Change and catalyze India’s and the world’s decarbonisation,” he added.