Fortis signs O&M agreement
In a bid to expand its footprint in eastern India, hospital chain Fortis Healthcare on Friday signed an operations and management (O&M) agreement with developer Dion Group to run a 300-bed hospital in Cuttack, Odisha.
This collaboration marks Fortis Healthcare’s first major presence in Odisha and second major entry in Eastern India after Kolkata.
As part of the agreement, the greenfield facility will be positioned as a center of excellence in multispecialty health services offering tertiary and quaternary care. It is expected that the hospital will become operational in three years.
Ashutosh Raghuvanshi, managing director and chief executive officer, Fortis Healthcare, said the upcoming hospital aims to improve access to advanced tertiary care for patients in Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and neighboring areas.
“This is part of the company’s broader strategy to increase access to quality healthcare across the country through a combination of brownfield expansion and inorganic growth initiatives, including operation and management agreements and asset-light growth models,” Fortis said in a regulatory filing to the exchanges.
The Fortis network currently has approximately 6,100 operational beds across 36 facilities, including 1,200 O&M beds.
Commenting on the agreement, Manoj Sahu, Promoter, Dion Group, said the partnership brings together the clinical and operational expertise of Fortis with Dion’s vision of building modern healthcare infrastructure for the state.
“This project will help meet the growing demand for advanced healthcare services and provide patients with access to quality medical care close to home,” he said.
The Odisha project reflects a broader trend of hospital chains deepening their presence in high-growth tier-II cities in eastern India, where demand for quality tertiary care is increasing with income levels.
In April this year, Max Healthcare also announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Kalinga Hospital at an enterprise value of Rs 300 crore. Similarly, Manipal Hospitals has been expanding its presence through recent acquisitions in Kolkata and Ranchi.
Fortis Healthcare made this announcement after market close. Shares of Fortis Healthcare closed 0.03 per cent lower at Rs 974.70 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on Friday.
