Apollo to intensify its nation-wide presence, plans to go international

EHM News Bureau - Chennai

Apollo Hospital Enterprises is planning to intensify its presence throughout India by setting up 120-bed hospitals in seven mini-metros and a couple of pure cardiac hospitals in the South. Besides, its also planning to establish an Institute of Minimal Invasive Surgery in association with Johns Hopkins Medicine International, USA, in one of the major cities in the country. The group will use a part of the USD 70.2 million it raised recently through a Global Depository Receipt (GDR) issue for the expansion.

“Though the exact location is yet to be finalised, the institute is expected to come up within a year. It will be set up on a 50-50 partnership with Johns Hopkins,” said Prathap C Reddy, chairman of Apollo Hospitals. Apollo has recently entered into a partnership with Johns Hopkins to jointly develop state-of-the-art concepts, technology, tests and operating systems in clinical fields such as oncology, neuro sciences, cardiology and in clinical research and medical education.

Apart from land and building, the equipment for the firm is expected to cost nearly USD 25 million. “We will invest in the equipment also,” Reddy added. The proposed institute would not only treat people, but also be used to train Apollo personnel.

A study on where to locate the 120-bed hospitals is currently on. These hospitals would be fully owned by Apollo and would go operational in two years. On each hospital, Rs 15 crore would be invested.

The speciality cardiac hospitals would involve an investment of around Rs 40 crore each. He justified the move to set up speciality cardiac hospitals on the ground that nearly 40 percent of Apollo’s revenue comes from cardiac treatment. “We looked at Bangalore and also Andhra Pradesh for cardiac hospitals,” he said.

Another Rs 60 crore would be used to consolidate and upgrade the existing facilities of Apollo. Apollo is planning to set up central reference labs in Chennai, Hyderabad and Delhi. “We will do high-end clinical tests here,” he said. This would be a 50:50 joint venture with Johns Hopkins, who was expected to invest in medical equipment. These labs would take off in 12 months.

Apollo has posted 17 per cent increase in revenues and 34 per cent increase in net profit for the quarter ending June 2005. Revenues and net profit for the first quarter grew to Rs 157 crore and Rs 14 crore as against Rs 134 crore and Rs 10.5 crore respectively for the first quarter in 2004.