(Yicai Global) March 26 — Chongqing Porton Fine Chemicals Ltd. has secured the rights to sell an AIDS drug in more than 100 countries and regions after Johnson & Johnson agreed to let it produce an active ingredient in the medicine.

Porton penned the licensing deal for Darunavir with J&J subsidiary Janssen Sciences Ireland UC, it said in a statement without disclosing the financial particulars. The firm plans to then sell the drug in Africa and, Southeast Asia and on the Asian subcontinent, but will need to obtain approval from the World Health Organization and food and drug administrations first.

Daruvanir generated USD1.8 billion in revenue for J&J last year, and Porton has been a key supplier of its intermediates over the past decade, earning itself income of more than CNY600 million (USD96 million) from 2014 through 2016. Intermediates are chemicals that have little use on their own but can be used to create useful products.

Porton now has the opportunity to provide quality and affordable drugs to treat AIDS patients worldwide, especially those in places where medical resources are limited, the statement said. The move will be a step up for the company as it begins to produce active pharmaceutical ingredients for drugs, rather than just intermediates, it added.