[en] As a part of continuous program of systematic study of progress of nuclear reactions at low and intermediate energies, analyzed herewith is the production of ⁶⁴Cu radioisotope via proton induced nuclear reaction on ^natNi over the energy range from 0 - 40 MeV and the consistency check of experimental data was carried out using the nuclear model codes EMPIRE - 3.2.3 - MALTA and TALYS 1.6. The radioisotopes of copper have great potential for preparing metal - chelates for medical use. In particular the radionuclide ⁶⁴Cu is very well suited: it has appropriate half - life, a low β+ end - point energy of 0.65 MeV and half-life 12.7 h. The decay properties are almost ideal for imaging. The radionuclide ⁶⁴Cu (T_1/2 = 12.7 h) is an important non-standard positron emitter, suitable for combining PET imaging and targeted therapy