Nuclear medicine facilities

ANSTO supplies a wide range of nuclear medicines via our licensed facilities.

All our nuclear medicine products are manufactured at ANSTO in Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) licensed clean rooms. Our facilities are licensed by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Our adherence to strict quality assurance and control ensures the safety and efficacy of the products.

Midway through 2019, ANSTO began manufacturing molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) through a new state-of-the-art nuclear medicine manufacturing facility.

ANSTO's Mo-99, which decays to form Tc-99m, is produced at our Lucas Heights precinct and delivered to medical practices all over Australia. We are one of only a few organisations globally capable of delivering Tc-99m from one site.

OPAL multi-purpose reactor

Australia’s Open Pool Australian Lightwater (OPAL) reactor is a state-of-the-art 20 megawatt multi-purpose reactor that uses low enriched uranium (LEU) fuel to achieve a range of activities to benefit human health, enable research to support a more sustainable environment and provide innovative solutions for industry.

Mo-99 Manufacturing Facility

ANSTO's Mo-99 manufacturing facility secures Australia’s ability to produce Mo-99 to meet current and future domestic demand and provide a significant proportion to support global demand.

Nuclear medicine processing and distribution

ANSTO’s nuclear medicine processing and distribution facility assembles, loads, tests and distributes a range of nuclear medicine products, including Mo-99. The Mo-99 is dispensed into an ANSTO radiopharmaceutical Gentech® Generator where it decays to Tc-99m.

Step 1
OPAL reactor
Production of molybdenum-99 (Mo-99), the precursor to technetium-99m (Tc-99m), begins in ANSTO's OPAL reactor.
Learn more
Step 2
Mo-99 Manufacturing facility
Following irridation low-enriched uranium target plates are transported to ANSTO’s Mo-99 Manufacturing facility to separate, purify and extract the Mo-99.
Learn more
Step 3
Processing and distribution facility
The final steps to prepare Mo-99 take place in our Nuclear medicine processing and distribution facility, also known as Building 23. This facility also assembles, loads, tests and distributes a range of other nuclear medicine products.
View our full list of products
Step 4
ANSTO's Gentech® Generators
The most widely used radioisotope in nuclear medicine, technetium-99 (Tc-99m), decays from it's parent radioisotope molybdenum-99 within these shielded Gentech® Generators which are manufactured by ANSTO.
Find out more about Tc-99m
Step 5
Delivering nuclear medicine across Australia
ANSTO delivers thousands of patient doses of Tc-99m to hospitals and nuclear medicine centres in Australian and the region every week.