Cape Town — SA's biggest generic drug maker, Aspen Pharmacare, has restructured its oncology joint venture with India's Strides Arcolab, selling its 50% stake for 117m.

Under the agreement, Strides will license its existing and future oncology products to Aspen to distribute in some of its territories.

The deal is part of Aspen's strategy to source products to supply through its international distribution network, which reaches more than 100 countries.

"Through these agreements we continue to build on the strong partnership we enjoy with Strides. Each party now does what they do best," Aspen CEO Stephen Saad said yesterday.

"Our focus is commercialisation of these niche products in our territories. Aspen is building its own oncology product franchise. The existing and future pipeline of products from Strides will be an important contributor in achieving this objective," he said.

Aspen signed the oncology joint venture with Bangalore-based Strides in 2007. Strides was in the final stages of commissioning its oncology manufacturing facility, Aspen investor relations manager Roshni Gajjar said.

"Our preferred focus is on the distribution side of the business. We've retained access to the existing and new pipeline from Strides so that we can distribute these products into the territories," she said.

Strides had 32 oncology products under development, some of which had already been submitted for registration with authorities, she said. Strides' s strategy was to enhance its manufacturing and development capabilities.