GLP-1 drug demand to drive growth, SCHOTT Glass India plans ₹150-crore expansion

The rapid rise in demand for GLP-1 injectable drugs is set to drive growth for SCHOTT Glass India, which plans to double its revenue and profitability in the next three to three-and-a-half years.

The German specialty glass manufacturer, a 100% subsidiary of SCHOTT AG, Germany, is also preparing for an additional ₹150-crore investment in its Jambusar facility in Gujarat to expand capacity and strengthen quality systems.

“The GLP-1 drug market is growing at around 30-35% annually, and nearly three-fourths of this demand is for injectables,” Pawan Kumar Shukla, President and Managing Director of SCHOTT Glass India told Business Today. “We anticipated this trend early and invested in tubing for syringes and cartridges used in pre-filled syringes. Our current capacity can handle demand for the next two to three years, and we are ready to double capacity within this period if required.”

The Jambusar facility, located between Bharuch and Vadodara, is the largest pharmaceutical tubing manufacturing site in India and the second largest globally. SCHOTT entered India in 1999 and has invested over ₹1,000 crore since 2019, with earlier expansion phases between 2006 and 2009 and again in 2019.

SCHOTT, manufactures pharmaceutical tubing in India through its subsidiary, SCHOTT Glass India. The company claims to hold over 50 per cent of the global market share in pharmaceutical tubing . SCHOTT also operates as a 50:50 joint venture with the Serum Institute of India, known as SCHOTT Poonawalla Pvt. Ltd., in which TPG (TPZ) recently acquired a 35 per cent stake that manufactures vials, ampoules, pre-filled syringes, and cartridges

Production at the Jambusar site is evenly split between domestic consumption and exports, serving about 13 countries across Asia and the Middle East, excluding China, where SCHOTT already has local manufacturing operations.

Shukla said SCHOTT’s global supply chain relies heavily on its India subsidiary, which plays a key role in serving emerging markets. However, he ruled out any immediate plans for a separate listing in India. “We focus on shareholder value, which we already deliver. We are a cash-rich company and do not see an IPO in the near term, certainly not within the next two to three years,” he said.

While the company remains open to restructuring opportunities within tubing manufacturing, it is not considering joint ventures with pharmaceutical companies. “Our direct relationships are with converters, not pharma companies,” Shukla said.

He added that SCHOTT Glass India aims to maintain its market leadership by reinforcing its supply chain for converters and expanding into new applications and geographies. “We plan to capture new applications early, as we did with pre-filled syringes in India where we are currently the sole supplier. Portfolio diversification is also a key growth driver for the future,” he said.