A step towards renewable resources

The Indian pharmaceutical industry is ranked third in the world in terms of production volume and 14th in terms of domestic consumption value. India has the highest US FDA approved manufacturing plants outside the US. As per data available in the public domain in 2013, there were 4,655 pharma manufacturing plants across India, employing over 3,45,000 people. With the growing scarcity of existing natural resources in India and high alerts of global warming, the day when the industry will become handicapped due to unavailability of natural resources, is not too far.

Extensive energy consumption

The pharma industry produces multiple products in the form of tablets, capsules, ointments, liquids and powder. The sector requires uninterrupted energy flow in the manufacturing units. Manufacturing processes are energy intensive and the requirement of thermal and electrical energy varies depending on the product.

“Alternative source of energy is required to curb the pollution and to save natural resources.” Venkat Jasti Chairman & CEO, Suven Life Sciences

Venkat Jasti, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Suven Life Sciences also talks on the significance of uninterrupted power supply in pharma manufacturing sites. He says, “The pharma manufacturing industry requires continuous process and optimisation is done only through installation of some mechanical devices which can measure and optimise certain equipment.”

It has been reported that approximately 20 per cent of the total energy consumption of the units within the sector is due to head load. To overcome the challenges, the pharma industry is taking necessary steps towards renewable energy (green energy).

“The pharma industry recognises the benefits of renewable energy and is increasingly relying on alternate sources of energy such as wind and solar power to fulfill its energy requirements.” Madhu Rao Sr Director – Industrial Affairs (South Asia), Sanofi

Madhu Rao, Senior Director – Industrial Affairs (South Asia), Sanofi comments, “The pharma industry recognises the benefits of renewable energy and is increasingly relying on alternate sources of energy such as wind and solar power to fulfill its energy requirements.”

“The pharma manufacturing sector, specifically API manufacturing is very energy intensive, where almost 40 – 50 per cent of the operating costs are related to energy. So, I believe that this is a prime driver for reduction of energy usage and costs.” Debabrata Gupta Director & COO, USV

Debabrata Gupta, Director and Chief Operating Officer, USV notes, “The pharma manufacturing sector, specifically API manufacturing is energy intensive, where almost 40 – 50 per cent of the operating costs are related to energy. So, I believe that this is a prime driver for reduction of energy usage and costs.”

Renewable energy

Renewable energy is defined as energy that comes from resources which are naturally replenished on a human timescale such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves and geothermal heat. Renewable energy can replace conventional fuels in four distinct areas: electricity generation, hot water/space heating, motor fuels, and rural (off-grid) energy services.

Solar energy

Solar energy is a very popular source of renewable energy. Concentrated solar thermal (CST) technologies are considered as most relevant and efficient renewable energy technologies these days. Jasti explains, “In order to produce solar power during the day, one has to have a huge battery backup which is expensive; hence it is not viable for the pharma industry. The pharma industry especially which is into producing bulk drugs runs 24 hours. In event of a power cut during the evening peak hours, solar power cannot be produced.”

Rao elaborates how important and cost-effective renewable energy would turn out to be in the long run for the pharma industry. He says, “Investments in renewable energy can drive business value by helping companies mitigate the risks of rising energy costs and price fluctuations. Also, it leads to additional benefits such as improved quality and increased production which can lead to further productivity gains.”

Initiatives

Presently, though not many, some India-based as well as multinational pharma companies have installed renewable energy at their manufacturing sites. Rao highlights Sanofi’s initiatives to introduce green measures as a part of their corporate culture and says, “As a global healthcare leader, we at Sanofi India are reducing our carbon footprint and using energy responsibly as part of our mission to help protect life on this planet.

We strongly support the use of renewable energy and continually seek to limit the environmental impact of our activities throughout the life cycle of our products. Present in India since 1956, Sanofi is amongst the few healthcare companies that explores the use of renewable energy sources for our manufacturing operations.”

Gupta too shares his company’s efforts and says, “We continuously evaluate energy consumption at all our manufacturing sites and look for obvious leakages. There are inter functional groups at each site, who constantly work at conserving energy in various forms. The other initiative that we have been successful at is to identify areas where waste heat could be recovered and used productively.”

Challenges

Renewable energy can have positive and productive impacts on the companies’ performance, so what hinders pharma companies from adopting alternate resources? Gupta too feels that the cost is a major factor which is hindering the industry from adopting green technologies. He opines, “It is usually the capital cost as well as the ability to install the suitable equipment, that comes as a hindrance.”

Jasti informs, “We never considered going for renewable energy option and without the Government support it will be a very costly affair to think.”

However, Gupta is keen on green technologies and sharing his company’s corporate plans for adopting them, he says “There are no immediate plans to install solar panels in our facility. However, we are evaluating wind energy seriously through installation of wind mills. Wind mills need not necessarily be installed at the sites. In fact, they are most effective when installed in high wind areas around the country and then, in turn, connected to the central power grid.”

Government’s initiatives

Government does give subsidies to promote such initiatives, though the percentage might vary from industry to industry. Rao points out, “The Government provides subsidies to the pharma sector for installing renewable energy, however, there exists a huge scope for the simplification of the process and implementation of regulatory systems that will act as an incentive to the pharma companies and encourage them to install renewable energy.”

Jasti feels that these endeavours will have a positive impact in the long run and says, “Alternative source of energy is needed to mainly curb pollution and to save natural resources.”

Moving forward

It is the need of the hour minimise the consumption of non-renewable resources, which are getting depleted day-by-day.

Effectively harnessing the huge potential of renewable energy resources is very important to cope with the growing scarcity of conventional energy sources. The pharma industry also needs to take a stand and adopt a more environment-friendly approach to keep up its progress.

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