COLUMBIA — The University of Missouri will partner with several South Korean groups to design and build a new nuclear research reactor, with a news conference Wednesday marking the start of the initiative.
The new reactor, officially called NextGen MURR (MU Research Reactor), will be a collaboration between the university and a consortium that includes Hyundai Engineering America, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI), Hyundai Engineering Company and MPR Associates, according to a news release.
NextGen MURR will be the university's second research reactor.
"It will be bigger, faster, stronger," UM System President and MU Chancellor Mun Choi said. "It will be twice as large, but it would be built for the type of radial pharmaceutical production which wasn't envisioned when the first reactor was designed back about 60 years ago."
A product of this research is a core piece in the only two FDA-approved targeted radiotherapies.
According to past KOMU 8 reporting, the NextGen MURR project will cost the university $1 billion and is expected to open in the next eight to 10 years.
First steps include a preliminary site evaluation and figuring out an initial project cost and schedule for the site. That initial process, the news release said, will take about six months to complete.
Funding
So far, the university has only secured $200 million of funding. Choi said the university is looking into other avenues to obtain the remaining amount.
"We are going to seek federal funding, state funding... in fact this year, Governor Kehoe placed $50 million for NexGen MURR into the budget," Choi said.
Choi also said the university will seek funding from philanthropists and other industry partners.
“This is a historic moment for our university, our state and the future of nuclear science and medicine,” Choi said in a news release. “NextGen MURR represents our commitment to research that changes lives. It will allow Mizzou to lead the nation in producing critical medical isotopes while opening new frontiers in science, engineering and patient care.”
Todd Graves, chair of the UM System Board of Curators, said NextGen MURR is an engine of progress.
"It will enhance Missouri’s role as a leader in nuclear science medical research, economic development and education for generations to come,” Graves said.
Existing reactor
The current MU Research Reactor manufactures radioisotopes used in cancer research and treatment.
It is the only U.S. producer of four essential medical isotopes used to treat liver, thyroid, pancreatic, and prostate cancers. These include yttrium-90 for the treatment of liver cancer; molybdenum-99 for analysis of heart functions; iodine-131 for treatment of thyroid cancer; and lutetium-177 for treatment of pancreatic and prostate cancers.
"We provide a critical resource for Americans," Choi said. "Without the University of Missouri Research Reactor, there will be 460,000 Americans that go without critical life-saving cancer treatment."
The proposed facility will be located at Discovery Ridge across from Park Restaurant and Bar in Columbia. MU already owns the land, and the land was previously approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for another nuclear project.
This story has been updated with additional details.