Last week, the European Commission approved a €2 billion plan by the Dutch government, known as the PALLAS project, to build a high-performance research reactor in Petten, the Netherlands. The reactor will produce medical radioisotopes for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other diseases. The new reactor will replace the high flux reactor currently in Petten, which has been in operation since 1961. The approval follows up on a 2013 European Commission decision to provide aid for the preparatory phase of the PALLAS project.