Cameco says Kazakh uranium mine has resumed
Cameco Corp. [CCO-TSX, CCJ-NYSE] said it has been informed by its partner National Atomic Company Kazatomprom JSC that production has resumed at the Kazakh Uranium joint venture mine in the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Cameco and Kazatomprom are now working with JV Inkai to determine the impact of the production suspension on the operation’s 2025 production plans.
Inkai is owned 40% by Cameco and 60% by Kazatomprom, which is majority owned by the Kazkh government. Production in the third quarter of 2024 on a 100% basis was 2.0 million pounds for the quarter and 5.5 million pounds for the first nine months of the year, compared to 2.0 million pounds and 6.3 million pounds respectively in the same periods last year.
In a press release on January 2, 2025, Cameco said it had been informed by partner Kazatomprom, and Joint Venture Inkai that Inkai had suspended production activity the previous day.
Inkai LLP temporarily suspended production activities at Block No 1 of the Inkai deposit due to the absence of required approvals from state authorities. The delay was caused by the late submission of the necessary documentation.
According to Kazatomprom, Inkai LLP has resolved the approval issue and resumed mining operations. The potential impact of the suspension on JV Inkai’s 2025 production plans is currently being assessed.
“Kazatomprom remains fully committed to fulfilling contractual obligations to all existing customers and maintains sufficient inventory levels to comfortably manage deliveries throughout 2025,’’ the company said in a press release.
Cameco shares eased 11.7% or $9.43 to $70.91 and trade in a 52-week range of $88.18 and $48.71.
Cameco is one of the largest global providers of the uranium fuel needed to energize a clean air world. The company’s competitive position is based on its controlling ownership of the world’s largest high-grade uranium reserves and low/cost operations.
The company has interests in tier-one mining and milling operations that have licensed capacity to produce more than 30 million pounds (its share) of uranium concentrates annually, backed by more than 469 million pounds of proven and probable mineral reserves.
The company’s assets in the Athabasca Basin in northern Saskatchewan include two of the highest-grade mines in the world – Cigar Lake and McArthur River/Key Lake. Cameco also has interests operations located in Kazakhstan and the United States.
In an investment newsletter, Scotiabank said that according to published reports, Kazatomprom does not anticipate any significant impact on its production forecast of 65-68.9 million tonnes of uranium oxide (U308)
The in-situ recovery joint venture is the largest uranium operation in the Central Asian country.