March 17, 2026
Provided Image/TerraPower Isotopes
A rendering of the 250,000-square-foot manufacturing plant that TerraPower Isotopes plans to build in South Philadelphia’s Bellwether District.
TerraPower Isotopes, a nuclear medicine company backed by Bill Gates, is going to build a $450 million facility in the Bellwether District to manufacture rare radioactive isotopes that are used for cancer treatment.
The Washington-based company announced Tuesday it would lease a 250,000-square-foot space in South Philadelphia, marking its first East Coast property. No set construction timeline was set, but the state said it's investing $10 million on the project, which it expects to create 225 full-time jobs over the next three years. TerraPower will also be eligible for tax savings and benefits.
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Philadelphia was chosen in favor of over 350 other potential sites around the country due to its proximity to other life science industries, according to the company. TerraPower Isotopes did not respond to a request for comment.
Mayor Cherelle Parker called the development a “major win for Philadelphia."
“This investment will create hundreds of good paying jobs, strengthen our advanced manufacturing and life sciences sectors and expand economic opportunity,” she said in a statement. “Exciting things are coming to South Philly, and we are just getting started.”
The site will be used to produce radioisotope generators that allow for the extraction of actinium-225, a rare isotope used in the practice of targeted alpha therapy, a burgeoning method that directly targets cancer cells with precise radiation. Due to the intricate production requirements, the annual global production of actinium-225 is less than a grain of sand, according to the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories.
“This new facility is a testament to the demand for actinium-225 as part of the growing industry which is transforming how cancer is treated,” Scott Claunch, president of TerraPower Isotopes, said in a statement.
TerraPower will be the second tenant signed on to the 1,300-acre Bellwether site owned by HRP Group, which took over the former home of the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery in 2020. Canned beverage manufacturer DrinkPAK announced in December that it would establish a $195 million, 1.4 million-square-foot facility near 26th Street and Penrose Avenue.
HRP Group said it plans on constructing over a dozen warehouses and industrial buildings around the area, potentially creating over 19,000 full-time jobs. The state has also invested $40 million to improve roadways around the Bellwether District area.
