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harmaceutical giant PT Kalbe Farma says it is looking to expand into the Philippines and Vietnam ahead of the implementation of the ASEAN single market in 2015.

The publicly listed company has been in discussions with dozens of firms in the two nations, Kalbe director Vidjongtius said on Wednesday.

 “The Philippines and Vietnam are the two markets with the biggest potential in Southeast Asia,” Vidjongtius said.

ASEAN plans to implement the ASEAN Economic Community to bring the 600 million people of the association’s 10 member nations into a single market by 2015.

Kalbe has about Rp 5 trillion (US$530 million) available to finance expansion plans, Vidjongtius said. “We have a cash flow of around Rp 2 trillion and hope to generate Rp 3 trillion from our treasury stocks,” he added.

Kalbe would focus on the energy drinks sector in the Philippines.

“Our research shows the energy drinks market in the Philippines is very promising. We have been
exporting Extra Joss, one of our most popular energy drink products, to the country since last year,” he said.

Vidjongtius said the company was looking to work with Filipino companies to produce the drinks locally.

Kalbe exports Extra Joss, a product under its consumer health division, to the Philippines as effervescent tablets, as a liquid in glass bottles and as a liquid in PET bottles. Extra Joss exports reached $2 million in the first half of 2012, Vidjongtius said.

Kalbe has exported Diabetasol, its diabetic milk product, to the Philippines since the second quarter of this year, although sales were still small, he added.

In Vietnam, the company would focus on selling prescribed oncology drugs, according to Vidjongtius.

Kalbe’s prescription pharmaceuticals division currently offers 90 licensed products, including oncological, alimentary tract and metabolism medicine.

The firm’s chief market, however, remains Indonesia, which accounted for 96 percent of its total sales in the first half of 2012.

Kalbe’s net sales were Rp 6.24 trillion in the first half, up 26 percent from the same period last year, while net profits rose 20 percent to Rp 807 billion.

Prescription pharmaceuticals sales accounted for 26 percent of total sales in the first half, while the consumer health division contributed 16 percent.

Kalbe expects to see between 18 and 20 percent sales growth by the end of 2012.

Its latest expansion projects involved the acquisition of PT Hale International in July and a merger with milk-based beverage producer PT Milko Beverage Industry in June.

Kalbe acquired Hale, the healthy drink producer offering brands such as Original Love Juice and Pome Rama, for Rp 93 billion.

It also agreed to form a joint venture, PT Kalbe Milko Indonesia, with Milko to produce liquid nutritional products with an investment of Rp 150 billion. (tas)