Voyageur Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (TSX.V: VM) (OTC Pink: VYYRF) has announced significant progress in its proprietary Mueller iodine extraction process, achieving 99.8% purity and over 90% recovery in laboratory tests using real oilfield brine. This milestone moves the company closer to field pilot testing, which is scheduled to begin in the coming weeks, with operations planned for September 2026.
The Mueller process is designed to recover high-purity iodine from iodine-rich oilfield brine, supporting Voyageur’s strategy to establish a domestic iodine supply for the North American radiology contrast media market. This initiative also offers oil and gas producers and midstream water operators a new pathway to generate value from produced brine, which is typically treated as waste.
The company has established a laboratory and fabrication site in Houston, Texas, dedicated to advancing the process using Anadarko and Permian Basin produced water. Laboratory operations have demonstrated the process under controlled conditions, generating clean brine suitable for disposal or reinjection, consistent with zero-liquid-discharge performance objectives. The built field-capable pilot unit, sized to treat up to 80,000 litres per day on a batch-continuous basis, is a critical step toward commercial deployment.
Key highlights from the laboratory and lab pilot include continuous operation using real oilfield brine feed, construction of a mobile pilot unit, generation of clean brine suitable for integration into existing disposal or desalination infrastructure, and validation of key process parameters supporting scale-up. Additionally, the company has completed a preliminary design basis for a 200 metric tonne per year plant and techno-economic and environmental validation supporting a low-cost OPEX and environmental profile.
“The continued advancement of the Mueller process is an important step in Voyageur’s plan to develop a reliable North American source of high-purity iodine,” said Brent Willis, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Achieving 99.8% purity and greater than 90% recovery in laboratory testing using real oilfield brine provides meaningful technical validation as we prepare for field pilot operations.”
The significance of this development extends beyond Voyageur. For oil and gas operators, produced water midstream companies, and investors, produced brine represents a largely untapped resource. Billions of barrels are handled and disposed of each year at meaningful cost, while only a small fraction of the iodine they contain is ever recovered. Voyageur aims to be the first to change that equation, potentially leading the broader industry’s effort toward brine valorization.
Voyageur’s vertically integrated strategy aims to improve supply-chain security, reduce reliance on imported raw materials, and lower operating costs for the production of medical imaging contrast agents. Iodine is a critical raw material used in iodinated contrast media, and the company plans to develop iodine production capacity of up to 1,000 tonnes per year to support its future pharmaceutical production requirements.
The company is progressing engineering and project planning to move from laboratory validation to field demonstration and commercial-scale design. Current work focuses on finalizing process systems for iodine polishing, prilling, and packaging, while further defining the modular field unit and central processing hub configuration. Subsequent engineering phases are expected to advance through front-end loading stages to refine cost estimates and support future commercial deployment.
Field testing will provide operating data under real-world conditions, which is critical for any technology intended for commercial deployment. The modular production concept allows 200 tonne per year field units to be deployed at multiple saltwater disposal sites, producing iodine concentrate that can be transported to a central hub for final processing.
“Our staged approach is designed to validate iodine recovery in the field, advance modular production, and ultimately support future iodine-based drug manufacturing,” added Mr. Willis. “By developing the Mueller process alongside our Frances Creek barium project and planned manufacturing capabilities, Voyageur is working to position itself across key parts of the medical imaging contrast media value chain.”
The company will provide further updates as field testing begins, operating data is collected, and additional technical milestones are achieved. For more information about Voyageur Pharmaceuticals, visit https://voyageurpharmaceuticals.ca.
