USD160M+
greenfield plant in Hamilton, Ontario delivers a tenfold capacity expansion,
scaling the company from clinical trials to commercial-scale
radiopharmaceutical manufacturing.
September
6, 2026 | Hamilton, Ontario, Canada: AtomVie
Global Radiopharma, a Canadian contract development and manufacturing
organization (CDMO) specializing in radiopharmaceuticals, celebrated the grand
opening of its new purpose-built manufacturing facility at 10 Aeropark
Boulevard in Hamilton, Ontario. Representing an investment of more than US$160
million, the 72,300-square-foot plant is now the largest single-site CDMO
facility for radiopharmaceutical development in North America and delivers more
than a tenfold increase in AtomVie's manufacturing capacity. Purpose-built to
support lifecycle growth, the facility enables seamless progression from
early-stage development to commercial manufacturing, with customizable space
reserved for clients' future requirements. AtomVie, a spinout of McMaster
University's Centre for Probe Development and Commercialization, expects to
grow its workforce beyond 200 employees by the end of 2026 as the site scales
toward full operations, building on a track record of more than 70 clinical development
and technology transfer programs, over 1,000 cGMP batches manufactured, and
more than 4,400 cGMP doses delivered to patients across 28 countries with a
delivery success rate above 99%.
According
to Bruno Paquin, Chief Executive Officer, AtomVie Global Radiopharma, “This
Grand Opening represents the next chapter of AtomVie's journey and a proud
milestone for Canadian innovation in nuclear medicine. Our new purpose-built
facility amplifies a proven track record of reliable global delivery and deep
scientific expertise, enabling us to support the development and commercialization
of our partners' pipelines. Above all, it advances our purpose of transforming
patients' lives by delivering high-quality radiopharmaceuticals to those who
need them, all around the world."
According
to TechSci Research, AtomVie's Hamilton facility
signals a structural shift in the radiopharmaceutical value chain:
manufacturing capacity, rather than clinical innovation alone, is fast becoming
the binding constraint on commercial growth in nuclear medicine. TechSci
Research estimates that the global radiotheranostics market will expand from
approximately US$11.15 billion in 2025 to US$33.98 billion by 2031, registering
a CAGR of 20.41%, while the broader radiopharmaceuticals market is projected to
grow from US$6.12 billion in 2025 to US$8.32 billion by 2031 at a CAGR of
5.25%. This demand surge, led by targeted radioligand therapies for oncology
and a broader theranostics convergence of imaging and therapy, is colliding
with a tightly constrained supply of GMP-grade manufacturing capacity.
Radiopharmaceutical
production is among the most capital-intensive and technically demanding
segments of pharma contract manufacturing infrastructure must accommodate
specialized hot cells, radiation shielding, short-lived radioisotope logistics
and stringent regulatory oversight which limits the pool of credible CDMOs able
to serve late-stage and commercial pipelines. The response is a visible wave of
capacity investment in North America, Europe and Asia, with AtomVie's more than
US$160 million greenfield commitment illustrating the scale of capital required
to compete. For biopharmaceutical partners, the strategic benefit is de-risked,
scale-ready supply: the ability to transition a molecule from Phase I through
commercialization on a validated platform shortens timelines that would
otherwise be consumed by facility qualification at multiple sites.
For
governments, the investment reinforces domestic life-sciences manufacturing
resilience and high-skilled employment, a policy priority reflected in
Ontario's life-sciences funding commitments. For competitors, the entry of a
ten-fold capacity expansion raises the bar scale, isotope supply security
(lutetium-177, actinium-225 and other emerging isotopes) and regulatory track
record will increasingly differentiate the winners. Risks merit attention:
capacity utilization depends on clinical pipeline progression across the
industry, isotope supply remains concentrated among a handful of producers, and
regulatory complexity elevates execution risk.
TechSci Research
anticipates accelerating consolidation and strategic isotope-supply
partnerships across the CDMO landscape, and views capacity-led investments
aligned with theranostic growth such as AtomVie's as forward-looking bets on a
market where scarcity of manufacturing capability, not demand, will define the
next phase of competition.