Actions needed to ensure a reliable supply of 99Mo and 99mTc?

The NEA established the High-level Group on the Security of Supply of Medical Radioisotopes (HLG-MR) to examine the causes of ⁹⁹Mo/⁹⁹mTc supply shortages in 2009. It undertook an economic analysis and determined that lack of economic sustainability in producing reactors was the major cause of the shortages. From that it developed a policy approach, including principles and supporting recommendations to address those causes. Since then it has looked at the way the supply chain has implemented these policy principles through initiating a self-assessment process, which revealed uneven application and lack of adherence to the key principle of full cost recovery. As part of the analysis, the NEA has also reviewed the global ⁹⁹Mo/⁹⁹mTc supply situation periodically, using the most up-to-date data from supply chain participants, to highlight periods of reduced supply and underscore the case for implementing the HLG-MR policy approach in a timely and globally-consistent manner. This current paper presents the preliminary results from an updated ⁹⁹Mo supply and demand forecast, focusing on the potentially critical 2015-2020 period, when two major ⁹⁹Mo producers (the NRU reactor in Canada and the OSIRIS reactor in France) are scheduled to cease ⁹⁹Mo irradiations. It concludes with a review of the effectiveness of the actions taken to date and indicates where further action is needed. (author)