Voyageur Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (TSX.V: VM) (OTC Pink: VYYRF) has engaged Fluor Corporation, a global engineering and construction firm, to complete comprehensive feasibility studies for two strategic projects that will advance the Company's vertically integrated North American supply chain for radiology contrast drugs. The engagement covers an iodine extraction and production facility in Oklahoma, USA, developed in collaboration with Bayer AG, and an integrated iodine and barium contrast drug manufacturing facility.
The iodine project, part of a collaboration with Bayer, involves a feasibility study for a proposed facility using Voyageur's patent-pending Mueller process to extract high-purity iodine from oilfield brine. This project aims to produce iodine for use in contrast media drugs. The integrated drug manufacturing facility is expected to produce finished barium and iodine-based contrast media products, combining Voyageur's high-purity barite from its 100%-owned Frances Creek barium deposit in British Columbia with domestically sourced iodine, creating the first fully integrated 'Earth-to-Bottle' contrast media platform in North America.
Voyageur has budgeted US$2,350,000 for completion of the Bayer project feasibility study and will create a final budget for the integrated drug facility study after testing its proprietary Streamline iodine drug manufacturing process. Fluor's expertise in process engineering, project economics, and industrial facility design will ensure the studies meet high technical, environmental, and economic standards required for project financing and regulatory approvals. The studies are expected to be completed in early 2027, paving the way for a potential construction decision later that year.
'We are thrilled to partner with Fluor to de-risk and accelerate these projects,' said Brent Willis, CEO of Voyageur Pharmaceuticals. 'With the iodine initiative and Fluor's technical expertise, we are moving decisively toward securing North America's supply chain for critical medical imaging drugs.' The dual feasibility studies build on Voyageur's recent progress, including Health Canada-approved barium contrast products already generating commercial sales and the ongoing Bayer collaboration. Subject to successful completion of the feasibility study, Voyageur and Bayer may consider advancing the project under an offtake-linked production financing arrangement, where Bayer may provide capital financing while Voyageur operates the project.
Voyageur Pharmaceuticals is focused on becoming a low-cost, vertically integrated producer of barium and iodine Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients and finished imaging contrast agents. The Company controls its own secure, domestic source of pharmaceutical-grade barium sulfate through the Frances Creek barite project, and its patent-pending Mueller process enables low-cost extraction of iodine from brine water. Combined with its proprietary Streamline manufacturing technology, the Company plans to process iodine directly into finished iodine contrast drugs within a single, integrated production chain. This end-to-end ownership is expected to deliver materially lower operating costs and create a reliable North American-based supply chain for critical medical imaging agents, reducing geopolitical, logistics, and shortage risks for hospitals and patients.
For further information, contact Brent Willis, CEO, at Brent@vpharma.ca or 403-923-5944, or visit https://voyageurpharmaceuticals.ca.
