Name of the Project
Multipurpose reactor (MPR) project.

Location
Pelindaba, South Africa’s North West province.

Project Owner/s
State-owned South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa).

Project Description
The MPR is intended to succeed SAFARI-1 – a 20 MW light water-cooled research reactor – when it reaches the end of its life.

The 20 MW to 30 MW MPR will produce radioisotopes for use in healthcare. Medical radioisotopes manufactured at Pelindaba include active pharmaceutical ingredients such as Molybdenum-99, I-131 and Lutetium-177.

The MPR provides many options to produce new radioisotopes, which are considered the future in therapeutic nuclear medicine.

These include short-range radioisotopes that will be delivered by smart delivery systems to tumour cells, radiating cell by cell and, thereby, eliminating the cancer while preserving the surrounding healthy tissue.

The MPR will be equipped with a cold-neutron source that extends the delivered range of neutrons to long wavelengths (very low energies). This inclusion will also make it the only cold-neutron source available in Africa and might, thus, attract interest from the region and continent.

This capability will be located at the Neutron Beam Line Centre – a new large-scale research hub equipped with an extensive suite of neutron scattering applications – that will be associated with the MPR.

Potential Job Creation
About 5 000 direct and 26 000 indirect jobs are expected to be created during construction.

The nuclear reactor will provide employment for about 750 full-time employees and create an additional 3 800 indirect jobs.

Capital Expenditure
Necsa secured R1.2-billion in funding in February 2025.

Planned Start/End Date
Necsa is expected to provide a timeline for the project by the end of the year.

Latest Developments
Necsa received approval for Phase 2 of its multipurpose reactor in February 2025, which entails doing the detailed design.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Not disclosed.

Contact Details for Project Information
Necsa, tel +27 12 305 4911 or email communication@necsa.co.za.