Julphar to start exports of its medicines to Saudi Arabia again

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has allowed Ras Al Khaimah based Julphar to once again export its prescription drugs to the kingdom. Julphar had been suspended from selling there for nearly two years.

As per the approval, more than 100 Julphar-made products registered in Saudi Arabia will be made available.

“We are pleased to announce that more than 100 products registered in Saudi Arabia will again be available in the market,” said Sheikh Saqer Humaid Al Qasimi, Chairman. “We will continue to strengthen our partnership and cooperation with all relevant regional authorities today and in the future as our products continue to be successfully sold in 50 markets around the world.

“We would like to thank the SFDA (Saudi Food and Drug Authority) and UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention for their continued guidance and support as we worked together to implement further improvements in our manufacturing processes as per recommendations highlighted in their report.”

Julphar, in fact, had started supplying the Saudi market from its new production facility at King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) during the end of 2019. The plant has an installed annual capacity for one billion tablets, 300 million capsules, 30m bottles of syrups/suspensions.

Re-entry will aid bottom-line

The absence from the Saudi market had hurt Julphar’s financials in the last year and more, and it was a priority for the company to get back in at the earliest opportunity. The Saudi Food & Drug Authority had in September 2018 imposed the import ban citing a “lack of adherence to the principles of good pharmaceutical manufacturing”.

The UAE company is now awaiting approval for to get back to selling its products in Kuwait. It was in March that Julphar products were once again allowed to be sold in Oman.

Julphar reported Dh301.5 million in sales for 2019, a sharp decline from the Dh719.8 million it had the year before. But the drug maker managed to bring down losses to Dh518.9 million from 2018’s Dh617.8 million. 

Restructuring

Earlier in the month, Julphar’s shareholders gave it the go-ahead for a capital restructuring. Partially aimed at improve the debt profile, the process would see a rights issue to increase the share capital by up to Dh500 million. The new shares would have a nominal value of Dh1, “after having extinguished the company’s losses”.