Nordion boosts revenue as AECL reactor back on line

Revenues at Nordion Inc have bounced back with the return to service of the nuclear reactor that supplies the Ottawa-based company with the raw materials for its medical isotopes. Overall revenue jumped 23% to $274 million in 2011, up from $222 million in 2010 — the year the National Universal Reactor was shut down at Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd's Chalk River facility. Revenue from medical isotopes increased 282% from $9.4 million to $36.1 million, boosting net income from continuing operations to $43.5 million, compared to a loss of $83.8 million in 2010. Nordion is one of the world's largest suppliers of medical isotopes derived from Molybdenum-99, which is generated by AECL through a long-standing agreement with the Crown corporation….