Highlights

• German radiopharmaceutical leader, Eckert & Ziegler, navigates the global yttrium crisis by transforming scarce isotopes into GMP-compliant Y-90 cancer therapies.
• The company's operations are insulated from China's export controls through diversified processing and irradiation partnerships.
• China controls 90% of yttrium production, and export restrictions have triggered price spikes over 1,000%.
• Eckert & Ziegler's downstream processing model achieved 9% EBIT growth by producing clinical-grade Yttrium-90 for life-saving liver cancer treatments.
• Strategic partnerships with Pentixapharm, SK Biopharmaceuticals, and Actinium Pharmaceuticals expand Eckert & Ziegler's radiopharmaceutical portfolio beyond Y-90 to Actinium-225 and other therapeutic isotopes.
• The company's initiatives position it, as a TecDAX-listed company, to capture the booming nuclear medicine market.

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How a German radiopharmaceutical leader navigates the global rare earth crisis to keep cancer therapies flowing

The recent Rare Earth Exchanges™ article "Yttrium: The Quiet Rare Earth Powering Modern Technology—and Why It's in Short Supply" masterfully dissects the global yttrium crisis. From China's stranglehold on over 90% of production to the looming three-year supply void before non-Chinese sources come online, the piece sounds an alarm for aerospace, semiconductors, and clean energy. But it only hints at yttrium's most personal application: saving lives.

Interestingly, Eckert & Ziegler, (opens in a new tab) a German-based nuclear medicine specialist, stands at the downstream vanguard, transforming scarce yttrium isotopes into GMP-compliant therapies that keep cancer treatments flowing amid export controls and price surges. Their story offers a blueprint for rare earth resilience in an era of geopolitical fragility.

The Medical Stakes

Yttrium's industrial applications grab headlines, but in oncology, the stakes are existential. Yttrium-90 (Y-90), a radioactive isotope, powers selective internal radiation therapy (SIRT) for inoperable liver cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma and metastases from colorectal tumors. Tiny Y-90-loaded microspheres are injected through hepatic arteries, delivering concentrated radiation directly to tumors while sparing healthy tissue.

Without reliable Y-90, patients face dire delays. Pharma pipelines stall. Clinical trials freeze. This is where Eckert & Ziegler's role becomes critical, however, not as a miner, but as a processor and manufacturer that bridges the gap between raw materials and bedside treatment.

How Eckert & Ziegler Sidesteps the Mining Crisis

Here's the key insight: Eckert & Ziegler doesn't mine yttrium. They irradiate stable Yttrium-89 (sourced globally from multiple suppliers) in partner reactors to produce Y-90, which has an ideal half-life of approximately 64 hours. This is long enough to manufacture and ship, short enough to minimize prolonged radiation exposure.

Their flagship product, Yttriga, is a sterile, carrier-free Y-90 chloride solution produced under Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards. It serves as the ready-to-radiolabel precursor for microspheres used in products likeBoston Scientific's TheraSphere and Sirtex Medical'sSIR-Spheres.

This downstream focus insulates Eckert & Ziegler from China's ion-adsorption clay dominance. While Rare Earth Exchanges warns of a critical gap until late-2020s diversification, through projects like Victory Metals' North Stanmore or emerging U.S. polymetallic deposits, Eckert & Ziegler bridges that gap through established, diversified supply chains and processing expertise. Their facilities in Germany and the United States transform irradiated feeds into clinical-grade material, supporting not just Y-90 but a growing portfolio of therapeutic isotopes.

A Company Built for This Moment

Founded in 1992 from a former East German research institute, Eckert & Ziegler has grown into a global leader in isotope technology. Listed on the TecDAX with over 1,000 employees, the company posted €224.1 million in sales for the first nine months of 2025 (a 4% year-over-year increase) with adjusted EBIT climbing 9% to €50.8 million. The medical segment drove double-digit growth, reflecting surging demand for radiopharmaceuticals.

The numbers tell a story of operational resilience. While yttrium oxide prices spiked dramatically following China's April 2025 export controls, with some reports citing increases of over 1,000%, Eckert & Ziegler's earnings beat expectations. Their model demonstrates that in critical minerals, processing prowess can matter more than mining access.

Beyond isotopes, the company offers vertical integration across the radiopharmaceutical value chain: contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) services, synthesis modules, logistics for radioactive shipments, and radiotherapy accessories. This ecosystem approach positions them as an indispensable hub in a fragmented market.

StrategicPartnerships Amplify Reach

This is not just theory. Recent deals underscore Eckert & Ziegler's expanding influence:

• In April 2025, they signed a manufacturing agreement with Pentixapharm to produce Y-90-based PentixaTher, a CXCR4-targeted agent for cancer trials. The compound targets receptors commonly overexpressed in acute myeloid leukemia, lymphoma, and solid tumors.
• A December 2025 supply agreement with SK Biopharmaceuticals secures Actinium-225 (Ac-225) for next-generation radiopharmaceutical therapies, strengthening the Korean company's global oncology ambitions.
• Agreements with Actinium Pharmaceuticals ensure Ac-225 supply for their lead product Actimab-A, advancing treatments for acute myeloid leukemia. CEO Harald Hasselmann noted: "The progress we have made in our Ac-225 project marks only the start of our program to address the global shortage of this vital radionuclide."

These partnerships extend Eckert & Ziegler's reach across the theranostic spectrum: the emerging field that pairs diagnostic imaging with targeted therapy using the same molecular carriers.

Processing Trump's Mining

Eckert & Ziegler's success illuminates a nuanced truth about rare earth security. China didn't just hoard ore: it built separation and processing prowess over decades, becoming the world's refiner even for minerals mined elsewhere. Eckert & Ziegler replicates this model for life sciences in the West, achieving chemical complexity and environmental compliance without state subsidies.

Consider the contrast with the upstream crisis. As Rare Earth Exchanges documents, China's 2025 export restrictions triggered panic across industries. U.S. imports collapsed. Manufacturers hoarded inventory. Aerospace and semiconductor firms flagged yttrium as a production bottleneck. Yet Eckert & Ziegler's stable output, as evidenced by their 2025 earnings growth, kept pharma giants supplied with Y-90 feeds.

This resilience stems from strategic diversification. By partnering with multiple irradiation sources, optimizing yttrium use in formulations, and investing in recycling-adjacent technologies for isotope recovery, the company has built redundancy into a system that others left dangerously lean.

Looking Ahead

The nuclear medicine market is projected to grow substantially over the coming decade, driven by radiopharmaceuticals that enable precision oncology. Eckert & Ziegler is positioned to capture this growth through expanded Ac-225 production, Gallium-68 generator networks, and Lutetium-177 pipelines for PSMA-positive prostate cancer treatments.

As new yttrium sources eventually come online, whether from Australia's ionic-clay ventures, Kazakhstan's Karaganda deposits, or Japan's deep-sea nodules near Minami Torishima, Eckert & Ziegler's processing expertise will integrate these feeds into clinical supply chains. The company's R&D in PET tracers and synthesis automation further cements this position, turning scarcity into innovation.

Challenges remain. Reactor capacity limits could constrain irradiation. Regulatory hurdles slow new facility approvals. Competition from integrated pharma players like Novartis intensifies. But Eckert & Ziegler's track record suggests adaptability.

Conclusion

While Rare EarthExchanges rightly sounds the alarm on yttrium's fragility, urging stockpiles, recycling, and non-Chinese mines, Eckert & Ziegler proves the supply chain's pivot point is downstream. Their GMP alchemy keeps therapies pulsing, patients treated, and markets confident.

Yttrium may power jets and chips, but through this unheralded German giant, it saves lives. As new sources emerge in the late 2020s, Eckert & Ziegler's legacy will be forging security from shortage, ensuring the "quiet rare earth" roars on in medicine's front lines.

For those navigating the critical minerals landscape, the lesson is clear: bet on processors who turn geopolitical risk into therapeutic reality.

Eckert & Ziegler SE is a leading provider of isotope technology for medical, scientific, and industrial applications, specializing in cancer therapy, nuclearimaging, and radiometry. The company, headquartered in Berlin, Germany, operates globally with about 1,098 employees and is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in the TecDAX index.

The Medical segment supplies radioactive ingredients for cancer treatment and diagnosis, while the Isotope Products segment, its main revenue driver, produces radiation sources for medical and industrial uses. Additional operations cover industrial metrology and other holding activities, with revenue primarily from Europe, North America, and Asia-Pacific.

Dr. Harald Hasselmann (opens in a new tab) serves as Chairman of the Executive Board (CEO) and oversees the Medical segment, with Dr. Gunnar Mann managing Medical operations.

The company shows strong fundamentals, including an ROE of 18% outperforming the industry average of 8.4%, and net income growth of 9.9% over five years. Analysts rate it as OUTPERFORM with a target price of €22.83 (up 31.91% from recent €17.31 close) and forecast 2025 EPS at €0.77. Shares trade around €17, with a 52-week range of €12.27–€23.25.