Orion Pharma is a research and development oriented pharmaceutical division of the Orion Group (HEX:ORI), the leading Finnish company specialising in healthcare products. Pharmaceutical R&D at Orion Pharma focus on three therapy areas: Central Nervous System disorders, Cardiology and Critical Care, and Hormonal therapies. New innovative pharmaceutical products are discovered, developed, manufactured and marketed for human and animal health. By 2002, Orion Pharma had introduced seven New Chemical Entities into the world pharmaceutical market. In Scandinavia, which is Orion Pharma’s home territory, the company operations include a broad selection of human and veterinary preparations as well as active pharmaceutical ingredients. In Finland, Orion Pharma is the leading supplier of pharmaceuticals with about 11.7% market share.

    But future growth is seen in increased international operations through sales of proprietary products in the selected therapy areas. Orion Pharma’s innovative pharmaceutical products are marketed in Scandinavia and parts of Europe through company’s own sales force. In the US and rest of the world, products are co-marketed with other pharmaceutical companies. In 2002, Orion Pharma’s net sales were 483 MEUR. The share of international operations was 61.5%, and company’s proprietary products accounted for 33% of the net sales.