WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ASP Isotopes Inc. NASDAQ: ASPI , an advanced materials company dedicated to the development of technology and processes for the production of isotopes for use in multiple industries, today provided a corporate update regarding the Company’s operations in Pretoria, South Africa.
During December 2023, the Company and its North American commercial partner, RC14 Inc., started processing the raw materials for the production of highly enriched carbon-14 (14C), at the Company’s light isotope enrichment facility in Pretoria, South Africa. During June 2023, the Company entered into a multi-year carbon-14 take-or-pay contract with a minimum revenue commitment of $2.5 million per annum. Processing the materials for the first batch of carbon-14 is expected to take approximately six months, with the Company still expecting to receive the first revenues from this contract during 1H 2024. Subsequent production runs are expected to take less than three months, allowing the Company to make quarterly deliveries of carbon-14 in the future. The contract required RC14 to provide an irrevocable standby letter of credit, in lieu of a deposit. The Company can confirm that this standby letter of credit has been received from the customer.
The Company has also started the construction of its third isotope enrichment facility in Pretoria, South Africa. This third enrichment facility is expected to produce kilogram quantities of highly enriched Ytterbium-176 (176Yb), an important stable isotope used in the production of Lutetium-177 (177Lu). Lutetium-177 is an emerging beta emitting radiopharmaceutical used in oncology drugs such as Novartis’ Pluvicto. There are currently two FDA approved drugs and over 66 ongoing clinical trials for drugs that require Lutetium-177. The supply chain for this radioisotope has been particularly challenged with recent industry reports highlighting over two months treatment delay due to lack of drug availability (1). The Company aims to start commercial production of Ytterbium-176 during 2025.
This new Ytterbium-176 enrichment facility will be the Company’s first commercial plant to utilize Quantum Enrichment, an advanced isotope enrichment technique that is currently under development by ASP Isotopes and its energy subsidiary, Quantum Leap Energy LLC (QLE). Quantum Enrichment utilizes lasers and is intended to revolutionize isotope production of certain isotopes such as Ytterbium-176, Nickel-64, HALEU and Lithium-6. The Company recently entered into MOUs with two US-based Small Modular Reactor companies for the use of Quantum Enrichment for the production of HALEU.
About ASP Isotopes Inc.
ASP Isotopes Inc. is a pre-commercial stage advanced materials company dedicated to the development of technology and processes to produce isotopes for use in multiple industries. The Company employs proprietary technology, the Aerodynamic Separation Process (“ASP technology”). The Company’s initial focus is on producing and commercializing highly enriched isotopes for the healthcare and technology industries. The Company also plans to enrich isotopes for the nuclear energy sector using Quantum Enrichment technology that the Company is developing. The Company has isotope enrichment facilities in Pretoria, South Africa, dedicated to the enrichment of isotopes of elements with a low atomic mass (light isotopes).
There is a growing demand for isotopes such as Silicon-28, which will enable quantum computing, and Molybdenum-100, Molybdenum-98, Zinc-68, Ytterbium-176, and Nickel-64 for new, emerging healthcare applications, as well as Chlorine-37, Lithium-6, and Uranium-235 for green energy applications. The ASP Technology (Aerodynamic Separation Process) is ideal for enriching low and heavy atomic mass molecules. For more information, please visit www.aspisotopes.com.
About RC14 Inc.
RC14 is an isotope producer that concentrates Carbon-14 (14C) from low specific 14C harvested from a nuclear waste produced by a CANDU nuclear reactor. Stable supply of 14C has been a challenge over the last decades. The abundance of 14C in one of the residues produced from CANDU nuclear stations combined with the technology developed by CCNuclear and RC14 will provide the Isotope Community worldwide with a reliable and long-term supply of 14C isotopes. For more information, please visit www.rc14.com.
