New Delhi: The blockbuster weight loss drug Ozempic is all set to get an Indian generic variant, with the Delhi HC refusing to stop Dr Reddy’s from exporting a generic version of the drug. Novo Nordisk had patented Semaglutide, the molecule behind weight loss and diabetes management drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, in March 2006, with the patent expiring in March 2032.
But Novo Nordisk’s patent is treated differently in different countries. In India, the patent is set to expire in March 2026, due to differing patent treatments in India and the US.
What the court said
According to the arguments in the Delhi High Court, the patent held by Novo Nordisk is a ‘species’ patent, which is for a particular compound (in this case, Semaglutide) and not an umbrella genus patent for similar compounds. Novo Nordisk’s earlier ‘genus’ patent for Semaglutide expired in September 2024.
Novo Nordisk had earlier filed the patent in May 2025 against Dr Reddy’s, alleging patent infringement. Back then, Dr Reddy’s had provided an undertaking that it wouldn’t sell the drug in India until the expiration of the suit patent.
The court noted that the Semaglutide ‘species’ patent was essentially already the same as the expired ‘genus’ patent filed by Novo Nordisk.
The court noted that the duplication was part of a practice known as ‘evergreening’ where multiple patents are filed to expand the tenure of the molecule, and that no obvious inventions were found in the new patent.
Following this, the court permitted Dr Reddy’s to manufacture the Semaglutide compound and export it to countries where Novo Nordisk doesn’t have a registered patent, but not launch it until the patent expires in India.
Implications for Novo Nordisk
For Novo Nordisk, this ruling comes as an immediate setback, especially since it has a very small window of opportunity to market the product exclusively. The Danish-headquartered company received approval to market the drug only in September, and it will have to compete with various other copycat versions of the drug in the highly lucrative anti-obesity drug market in India, which is expected to grow to almost ₹25,000 crore by 2030.
