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SA's nuclear reactor at Pelindaba, near Pretoria. Picture: Necsa
SA's nuclear reactor at Pelindaba, near Pretoria. Picture: Necsa

The SA Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) on Sunday released a request for information for a multipurpose reactor (MPR) to replace its nuclear research reactor Safari-1, which is 56 years old and under care and age management.

Necsa will not award any contract as a result of the request for information and the process is intended only for information gathering.

Necsa group CEO Loyiso Tyabashe said the MPR will continue Safari-1’s legacy of “producing medical radioisotopes, which are used to treat thousands of patients diagnosed with cancer all over the world”. NTP Radioisotopes, a wholly owned Necsa subsidiary, is among the top four producers of radioisotopes in the world, he said.

Necsa chair David Nicholls said the MPR will create about750 full-time jobs and an additional 3,800 indirect jobs “for its operation and fulfilment of its research mandate during its operational lifetime”.

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