Boryung has landed a global manufacturing deal with Germany-based Cheplapharm to produce the schizophrenia and bipolar disorder drug Zyprexa (olanzapine) for distribution in up to 46 countries across Europe, North America and beyond, the Korean pharma said Thursday.

Boryung plans to begin supplying Zyprexa to Cheplapharm as early as the fourth quarter of next year.

All Zyprexa supplied under the deal will be manufactured at Boryung’s Yesan Campus, which received EU-GMP certification from the European Medicines Agency in 2023.

Cheplapharm acquired global rights to Zyprexa, excluding Korea, from Eli Lilly in 2023 in a deal worth up to $1.4 billion. 

Boryung acquired the Korean rights to Zyprexa from Lilly in 2021. After completing a full tech transfer and bioequivalence verification process, the company brought production in-house in 2024. Its Yesan facility now serves as the manufacturing base for global supply.

Cheplapharm has continued to expand its portfolio of off-patent therapies through global licensing deals, including the December acquisition of global rights to Lilly’s chemotherapy Gemzar (gemcitabine), used to treat solid tumors such as lung, ovarian and pancreatic cancers, excluding Korea.

Boryung had already secured Korean rights to Gemzar in 2020 and added local rights to Alimta (pemetrexed), another Lilly-developed non-small cell lung cancer treatment, in 2022.

The Yesan site includes a cytotoxic injectable facility with capacity for at least 6 million vials annually and can expand more than fivefold through modular upgrades, according to Boryung. The company is also preparing for EU-GMP and FDA cGMP certifications for its oral solid dosage line.