SHINE Medical Technologies has received approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for construction of a 57,000 square-foot isotope manufacturing facility in Janesville, Wis., the company announced today.

“This is the first time in over 50 years a medical isotope plant of this kind has been granted a construction permit,” CEO Greg Piefer said in a statement. “We’ve developed a greener, safer and cheaper way to produce these life-saving isotopes on a global scale. Once operational, we expect the Janesville facility will improve the lives of over 1 billion people over its lifetime. It’s a very exciting time at SHINE.”

According to a release, SHINE is the first U.S. medical isotope producer to reach this stage of the NRC permitting process since the 1960s.

In November 2014, the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration awarded SHINE $3.28 million to establish a reliable, domestic supply of molybdenum (Mo-99) without the use of highly-enriched uranium.