Radioisotope producers around the world are working to meet the capacity lost with the end of production by Canada's National Research Universal reactor in 2016. Construction of a new production facility in the USA will help to meet the growing global demand for medical radioisotopes.

The Kazakhstan Tokamak for Material testing, or KTM, will undergo "real-mode" testing from November, according to the draft of an updated research program approved last week by the Commission of CIS Member States on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy. Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom announced the approval yesterday.

The UK's Nuclear Decommissioning Authority received more than GBP1.0 billion ($1.3 billion) of commercial income in the 2016/2017 financial year, which it says reduced the "net impact on the public purse" to GBP2.2 billion. According to its annual report and accounts, published yesterday, the exact figure was GBP1.025 billion, which was down from GBP1.094 billion in 2015/2016. Around 85% of its income, GBP612 million, came from the reprocessing and management of used fuel and waste.

The conversion of Ghana's research reactor to run on low-enriched uranium (LEU) instead of highly-enriched uranium (HEU) has been completed. It is the first of five such Chinese-supplied reactors outside of China to be converted.

A memorandum of understanding has been signed by Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and Vietnam's Ministry of Science and Technology on the construction of a nuclear science and technology centre in Vietnam. An inter-governmental agreement to build the centre was signed between Russia and Vietnam in 2011.

Jordanian researchers will have access to the research reactors and ancillary facilities of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission following the recent signing of a partnership agreement with the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission.

The Turkish Atomic Energy Authority has moved a step closer to the restart of its TR-2 research reactor, which was shut down in 2009 and converted to use low-enriched uranium fuel. A team of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency carried out an Integrated Safety Assessment of Research Reactors follow-up mission between 25 and 28 April, which concluded that several safety improvements to TR-2 have been implemented.

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) has begun dialogue with potential participants after unveiling its vision for the organisation's future. The long-term strategy foresees infrastructure investments of more than CAD1.2 billion ($873 million) over ten years and includes the development of a new small modular reactor (SMR) at Chalk River by 2026.

A group of experts has made recommendations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on the sustainable and safe operation of research reactors. "Ageing management and effective utilisation are major challenges for operators of research reactors," the IAEA said.

A plate-type uranium-molybdenum fuel for research reactors has completed performance tests in the USA. The fuel could be used to replace highly-enriched uranium fuel, which can pose a proliferation risk.

Yukiya Amano, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), spoke yesterday about the "remarkable contribution" nuclear applications make to "so many areas of our lives" at the opening of the agency's first International Conference on Radiation Science and Technology (ICARST 2017). The event is being held this week at the IAEA's headquarters in Vienna.

The UK's MAST Upgrade tokamak is to receive £21 million ($27 million) in funding to upgrade its plasma exhaust systems. The upgrades will allow fusion researchers to improve their understanding of plasma exhaust physics.