Biocon and Duopharma Biotech Secure Over MYR 225 Million in Insulin Contracts from Malaysia's Ministry of Health
核心洞察
Biocon's partner Duopharma Biotech secured multiple insulin contracts from Malaysia's Ministry of Health valued at over MYR 225 million.
The contracts cover short-acting recombinant human insulin, insulin glargine, and insulin aspart, with agreements spanning two to three years.
Biocon's Johor facility, Asia's largest integrated insulin manufacturing plant, will supply the products, supporting over 450,000 patients in Malaysia's public healthcare system.
Biocon Limited, an innovation-led global biopharmaceutical company, announced that its long-standing partner Duopharma Biotech Berhad (搜索) has secured multiple insulin contracts from Malaysia's Ministry of Health (MoH) valued at over MYR 225 million this year. Under these agreements, Biocon's subsidiary, Biocon Sdn. Bhd., Malaysia, will supply short-acting recombinant human insulin, insulin glargine, and insulin aspart to Duopharma (M) Sendirian Berhad for distribution across the country, reinforcing continued access to high-quality, cost-effective insulin therapies for people living with diabetes (搜索) in Malaysia.
The contracts comprise a three-year agreement valued at approximately MYR 155.27 million for human insulin, alongside two two-year agreements: approximately MYR 18 million for insulin glargine and approximately MYR 52.5 million for insulin aspart. Both companies emphasized their alignment with policies outlined in the 13th Malaysia Plan (RMK-13) and the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030), underscoring a shared commitment to improving healthcare outcomes through a steady and accessible medicine supply.
A Decade-Long Partnership Addressing Malaysia's Diabetes (搜索) Burden
Biocon and Duopharma Biotech have collaborated since 2016 to address Malaysia's growing diabetes (搜索) burden. Over the past decade, this partnership has supplied more than 120 million insulin cartridges to MoH facilities, supporting more than 450,000 patients within Malaysia's public healthcare system. With an estimated 4.75 million people living with diabetes in the country, ensuring affordable insulin supply remains a critical public health priority.
Shreehas Tambe, CEO & Managing Director of Biocon Limited, stated: "Malaysia has been central to Biocon's insulin journey for over a decade, anchored by our integrated insulin manufacturing facility in the country – the largest in Asia. Our Johor operations enable us to deliver insulin at scale, expanding patient access in Malaysia and around the world."
Joe Sian, Site Head of Biocon Sdn. Bhd., added: "Biocon's partnership with Duopharma Biotech has helped expand access to insulin therapies for patients in Malaysia. With an estimated 4.75 million people living with diabetes (搜索) in the country, ensuring affordable insulin supply is essential. This collaboration enables us to support patients across our full portfolio of insulin products."
Encik Wan Amir-Jeffery Wan Abdul Majid, GCEO of Duopharma Biotech Berhad (搜索), highlighted the strategic importance of domestic manufacturing: "It is more critical than ever to have robust domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity to safeguard patient access to essential medicines, strengthening national medicine security and achieving healthcare self-reliance for the country."
Asia's Largest Integrated Insulin Facility
Biocon Sdn. Bhd. operates one of Asia's largest integrated insulin facilities, located in Iskandar Puteri, Johor, Malaysia. The state-of-the-art facility features fully integrated capabilities spanning drug substance manufacturing and drug product fill-finish operations across vials, cartridges, and insulin delivery devices. It manufactures a comprehensive portfolio of regular, long-acting, and rapid-acting insulins for both Malaysian and global markets.
Since 2011, Biocon has invested over USD 600 million in the facility, representing one of the largest foreign direct investments in Malaysia's biotechnology sector. The site employs more than 1,100 personnel and houses advanced R&D, Quality Assurance, and Quality Control laboratories supported by a robust Quality Management System.
The facility has secured multiple global regulatory approvals, including from Malaysia's National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA), Ireland's Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) under the framework of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (U.S. FDA), Brazil's ANVISA, and Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). Notably, it remains the only manufacturing facility in Malaysia approved by both the EMA and the U.S. FDA for sterile biologic products.
Beyond Diabetes (搜索): Expanding into Oncology and Ophthalmology
Beyond diabetes (搜索) care, Biocon and Duopharma Biotech have worked closely in oncology for more than seven years and have recently expanded into ophthalmology biologics, further broadening access to high-quality biologic therapies for patients across Malaysia. Biocon has also partnered with the Malaysian government to contribute industry expertise to the MyMAHIR BioTechies initiative, supporting the skilling of biotech graduates and helping bridge the academia–industry gap.
Biocon Limited, headquartered in Bengaluru, India, operates in more than 120 countries with seven manufacturing sites, three R&D sites, 18 offices worldwide, and a workforce of over 9,500 employees. The company has commercialized 12 biosimilar products and over 30 generic formulations globally, with a robust pipeline of more than 20 biosimilar assets, as well as GLP-1 peptides and other complex generics.