GE Healthcare’s Pharmaceutical Diagnostics recently entered a multi-year deal with Chilean mining company Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A., a press release reported.
The deal will grant the company an ample supply of iodine, which is commonly used in the x-ray and computed tomography industries.
“We’re pleased to continue our relationship with GE Healthcare – a key customer for us for more than 40 years,” Pablo Altimiras, executive vice president of Iodine and Nitrates, SQM, said. “As one of the largest producers of iodine worldwide with approximately 24% of our production used for X-ray contrast media, we are committed to the iodine industry and will continue to improve quality and increase capacity to ensure the reliability of supply, which is essential to so many sectors, including health care.”
Under the terms of the agreement, SQM will increase its sum of year-on-year iodine raw material, fulfilling GE Healthcare’s goal of producing 30 million more patient doses of iodinated contrast media per year by 2025.
The deal comes amid the growing sum for CT procedures, resulting in the need for iodinated contrast media, which enhances the visualization of organs, blood vessels and tissues.
The production improvement efforts, which include a new $30 million manufacturing line at its Cork, Ireland contrast media production facility, scheduled to open this week, were made by the company to fulfill growing demand.
GE Healthcare Pharmaceutical Diagnostics specializes in the development and manufacturing processes of imaging agents, which are estimated to be used to support more than 100 million procedures per year. The company’s operations span more than 4,000 employees and seven manufacturing sites worldwide.
“We expect global demand for iodinated contrast media to double in the next 10 years,” Kevin O’Neill, president and CEO, GE Healthcare Pharmaceutical Diagnostics, said. “As an industry leader, we understand our responsibility to help meet this growing demand from customers and patients by investing in production capacity and securing higher volumes of iodine raw material. As one of the largest consumers of iodine globally, we value our long standing relationship with SQM, an important partner for us.”