Addition of solutions of mycobactin S in acetone or methanol/acetone mixtures to solutions of NpO 22+ in the same solvent leads to the immediate reduction of neptunium/VI/ to neptunium/V/. Np/V/ interacts with the ionophore to form a yellow complex with a cation: ligand ratio of 21. The course of these reactions is followed by measurement of changes in characteristic optical absorption and by spectrophotometric titration within the range 700–1350 nm.