Duopharma aiming for big govt insulin tender

KLANG: Duopharma Biotech Bhd is hoping to secure a sizeable contract to supply insulin to the Health Ministry (MoH) in the near term, which will help propel its growth.

“The significant jump (in contract value) has already occurred based on the announcements we made. I think we’ve announced all the significant jumps that we can foresee (for now).

“The next significant one will be the results of the insulin tender. That will be sizeable enough for us to make an announcement,” said group managing director Leonard Ariff Abdul Shatar.

“Our extension goes on till the end of October. While the tender (process) started (in May), I must caution that MoH traditionally for insulin always gives the contract to two parties.

“If only one party bids, MoH will wait until there’s capability for a second party to bid,” he told reporters after the company’s AGM yesterday.

Its wholly-owned subsidiary, Duopharma Marketing Sdn Bhd, and India Biocon Ltd’s local unit, Biocon Sdn Bhd, recently secured a six-month contract extension from MoH for the supply of insulin to public hospitals.

Duopharma said the latest extended agreement is effective from April 29 until Oct 28, 2025.

While the contract value was not disclosed in the filing, Leonard Ariff estimated the value of the six-month extension to be worth between RM30mil and RM35mil, about half of the annualised value of RM60mil to RM70mil.

Duopharma, in which Yayasan Pelaburan Bumiputra holds a 44.11% stake, was awarded contracts totalling RM684.15mil to supply a combined total of 100 pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical products to healthcare facilities operated by the government, until Dec 31, 2026. The contracts are for products listed under the MoH’s Approved Products Purchase List.

Meanwhile, Leonard Ariff aims to increase the company’s export business, which accounted for around 8% of its revenue in 2024, focusing on Asean countries mainly due to familiarity with regulatory environments and sizable markets.

The company operates in about 30 markets, but its primary focus remains on Asean, as countries like Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, and Thailand represent a significant portion of the global market, he explained.

He added that Duopharma has made inroads into Timor-Leste, having won a government tender to supply halal pharmaceuticals.

However, he expects higher demand for halal pharmaceuticals from Indonesia compared to Qatar and other Middle Eastern markets, which are still in the early stages.

He said Indonesia is moving towards implementing a law, originally slated for 2022 or 2023, that mandates halal certification for over-the-counter pharmaceutical products.

“They have delayed its implementation to 2026 or 2027. That would be a more viable opening for Duopharma products, rather than the Middle East,” Leonard Ariff explained.

The main focus for Duopharma this year will be on removing the bottleneck at its facilities in Klang and Bangi, Selangor, to cater to the needs of both the public and private sectors, ensuring its production capacity aligns with demand.

“We have more than enough capacity for the public sector. It is all about balancing (demand from the public and private sectors). We do not want to put all our eggs in one basket,” he said.