​Bruce Power to explore production of new medical isotopes, expansion of IPS

Building on the success of its Isotope Production System (IPS) over the past two years, Bruce Power is looking to expand its capabilities to ensure a stable supply of cancer-fighting medical isotopes for the world health-care community.

A letter was sent to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), outlining Bruce Power’s intention to install the proprietary IPS on other units based on the success of commercial operation in Unit 7 to produce Lutetium-177.

Bruce Power also plans to propose an amendment to its operating licence to explore the production of other in-demand medical isotopes to further help in the fight against cancer and for other medical uses.

“Southwestern Ontario, the rest of the province and the country have become global superpowers in the production of medical isotopes through innovation, partnerships, investment and stakeholder support,” said James Scongack, Bruce Power chief operating officer and executive vice-president.

“Our CANDU reactors provide a unique ability to irradiate isotopes on a large, consistent scale. Maximizing our capability to produce more Cobalt-60 and Lutetium-177, and looking at adding the production of other sought-after medical isotopes, is the socially-responsible thing to do for patients around the world.”

To ensure the supply chain remains strong during Unit 7’s life-extending refurbishment outage, scheduled to begin in late 2028, Bruce Power is also planning to install a second IPS in Unit 6 by 2027. To increase redundancy and capacity even further, Bruce Power will evaluate the feasibility install of a third IPS system in a Bruce A unit in 2029.

This approach will ensure that Bruce Power’s isotope program can nimbly support innovations in the isotope industry as research continues to identify new opportunities and react to current demands.

Bruce Power, through its partnership with Nordion, continues to provide a reliable supply of Cobalt-60, used for sterilization and the treatment of brain tumours and breast cancer. The Major Component Replacement (MCR) program and outage program at Bruce B are securing the supply of Cobalt-60 through 2064, and installed modifications have increased production. This work will continue as planned and is an essential underpinning of this critical isotope, globally.

Bruce Power partnered with Isogen (a jointly-owned company of Kinectrics Inc. and Framatome Canada) in 2019, to install an IPS on Unit 7 to produce Lutetium-177 while simultaneously producing safe, clean and reliable electricity for the residents of Ontario. The IPS on Unit 7, was declared in-service, Oct. 24, 2022, with Bruce Power and Isogen successfully commissioning a second production line on Unit 7’s IPS, which went into service Oct. 16, 2024.