CAMECO CORPORATION GOVERNANCE GUIDELINES
- Introduction – The Governance Role of the Board of Directors
- Code of Conduct and Ethics
Board Composition
Board Performance
Leadership Development
Committee Matters
Board and Committee Meeting Procedures
Introduction – The Governance Role of the Board of Directors
Cameco's board of directors is responsible to supervise the management of the business and affairs of the corporation. Cameco's business and affairs are conducted by its employees and management under the direction of the chief executive officer and the oversight of the board of directors. The board exercises its stewardship or oversight role by:
| (1) | determining the corporation's direction and character by approving its vision, mission, values and key policies and making decisions which set the tone and direction for the company; and |
| (2) | ensuring that the chief executive officer and senior management are capably carrying out their responsibilities, both in good times and in difficult ones. The board regularly monitors the effectiveness of management, including management's leadership, recommendations, decisions and the execution of its strategies. |
For the board's specific functions, please see its mandate.
Cameco's board of directors seeks to sustain a successful business, optimizing long-term financial returns and increasing the corporation's value. Consistent with Cameco's commitment to sustainable development, the board will consider in its decisions the interests of our shareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, the communities and environment where we operate, government and regulators, and the general public.
The board of directors is committed to good corporate governance (the way in which Cameco makes decisions), recognizing that it is important for strong performance by the corporation. In its deliberations, the board seeks to create a climate of respect, trust and candor, fostering a culture of open inquiry. One of the board's specific duties is to oversee the establishment of Cameco's governance framework. The direction and character of Cameco are defined by its vision, mission and values and reflected in its governance documents including its policies, code of conduct and ethics, charters, guidelines and principles (collectively called "policies") and programs. The policies set out Cameco's commitments and the programs state how Cameco will carry out those commitments. Cameco's key policies are approved by its board of directors upon the recommendation of management.
As a publicly listed company on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange, Cameco is subject to a variety of corporate governance guidelines and requirements both in Canada and the United States. The board has adopted the following guidelines to assist it in its corporate governance responsibilities and to ensure that the company's corporate governance practices comply with all of the governance rules and legislation in Canada and those of the United States applicable to foreign private issuers. These guidelines are available on Cameco's website www.cameco.com and are also available in print upon request.
Code of Conduct and Ethics
| 1. | Code of Conduct and Ethics The board expects all directors, officers and employees of the corporation to act with honesty, integrity and impartiality in order to earn and sustain trust, reflecting Cameco's values at all times. The corporation has adopted a code of conduct and ethics which addresses, among other things, conflicts of interest, corporate opportunities, confidentiality, compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations (including safety, health, environmental, securities disclosure and insider trading laws) and the reporting of illegal or unethical behaviour, and establishes mechanisms to facilitate the effective operation of the code. Directors are to report all actual potential or perceived conflicts of interest to the corporate secretary who will bring the conflict to the attention of the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee. All directors will excuse themselves from any discussion or decision affecting their business or personal interests. |
Board Composition
| 2. | Board Membership Criteria
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| 3. | Election of Directors In an uncontested election, any nominee for director who receives more "withheld" votes than "for" votes will tender his or her resignation for consideration by the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee. The nominating, corporate governance and risk committee will review the matter and make a recommendation to the board whether to accept the director's resignation. The board will publicly disclose its decision to accept or reject the resignation within 90 days of the shareholders' meeting, including the reasons for rejecting the resignation, if applicable. The director who has tendered his or her resignation pursuant to this policy will not participate in any deliberations of the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee or the board regarding the resignation. If a resignation is accepted, the board may appoint a new director to fill the vacancy created thereby. |
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| 4. | Board Size The board currently consists of 14 members. Cameco's nominating, corporate governance and risk committee annually assesses the size of the board and its composition to determine whether it has all the necessary constituents for effective decision making. In accordance with the articles of incorporation, the board shall not exceed 15 members. |
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| 5. | Director Independence
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| 6. | Non-Executive, Independent Chair The board will have a non-executive, independent director as chair. |
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| 7. | Board Succession The nominating, corporate governance and risk committee is responsible for maintaining a board succession plan that is responsive to the corporation's needs and the interests of shareholders. It is also responsible for maintaining a matrix of director talent and board requirements in order to identify possible skill gaps on the board. |
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| 8. | Board Term The board does not believe it should establish term limits. While term limits could help ensure that there are fresh ideas and viewpoints available to the board, they hold the disadvantage of losing the contribution of directors who have been able to develop, over a period of time, increasing insight into the corporation and its operations and, therefore, provide an increasing contribution to the board as a whole. |
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| 9. | Retirement Age The retirement age for board members is 72 years, which limit can be extended at the discretion of the board. |
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| 10. | Director Compensation
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| 11. | Share Ownership The share ownership guidelines established by the board call for each director to own and maintain during his or her term on the board, common shares or deferred share units equal in value to three times his or her annual retainer within, the later of, five years of joining the board or January 1st, 2010. |
Board Performance
| 12. | Director's Responsibility The primary responsibility of individual directors is to act in good faith and to exercise their business judgment in what they reasonably believe to be the best interests of the Corporation. In order to fulfill this responsibility, each director is expected to:
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| 13. | Attendance and Participation Each director is expected to attend all meetings of the board and any committee of which he or she is a member, and the annual meeting of shareholders. A director who is unable to attend a board or committee meeting in person may participate by telephone or teleconference. |
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| 14. | Strategic Planning and Risk Management Management is responsible for development of a strategic plan which is presented annually to the board for approval. At least once a year, the board holds a special meeting to specifically discuss strategic planning and strategic issues. In its deliberations, the board also discusses and assesses the principal risks of Cameco's business. The nominating, corporate governance and risk committee ensures Cameco has an effective enterprise risk management system. Through its enterprise risk management system, management reports on the principal business risks facing Cameco to the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee and the board. Also, the reserves oversight committee, audit committee and safety, health and environment committee each monitor those risks associated with their areas of oversight. |
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| 15. | Duties and Responsibilities of the Chair of the Board The board has adopted a position description for the chair of the board, which sets out the duties and responsibilities of the chair of the board. This position description (attached as Appendix B to these guidelines) will be reviewed from time to time. |
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| 16. | Access to Management Directors have access to members of management and are encouraged to raise any questions or concerns directly with management. The board and its committees may invite any member of management, outside advisor or other person to attend any of their meetings. |
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| 17. | Access to Outside Advisors The board and any of its committees may retain an outside advisor at the expense of the corporation at any time and have the authority to determine the advisor's fees and other retention terms. Individual directors may retain an outside advisor at the expense of the corporation with the approval of the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee or the chair of the board. |
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| 18. | Director Orientation and Continuing Education A director's manual is provided to all directors, which is updated from time to time. New board members attend a formal directors' orientation program. There is an annual site visit to a Cameco-operated facility or other nuclear facility for all directors. Board members may attend seminars and conferences from time to time on pertinent topics at the corporation's expense. The nominating, corporate governance and risk committee is responsible for confirming that a board education program (attached as Appendix D to these guidelines) is in place and resources are made available to provide an orientation program for new directors and appropriate continuing education opportunities for all directors. |
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| 19. | Performance Assessment of the Board, Committees and Individual Directors Annually, the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee reviews the effectiveness of the board, its chair and committees and individual directors through the use of a confidential survey, including a self-assessment, completed by each member. The results of the surveys are subsequently discussed by the board. The chair of the committee, through interviews with each director, provides directors with an opportunity to discuss any matters relating to their peers' performance or other aspects of the functioning of the board. The committee, through the survey and interviews, assesses the operation of the board and the committees, the adequacy of information given to directors, communication between the board and management, the effectiveness of the processes of the board and committees, and the effectiveness of the board and individual directors. The committee recommends to the board any changes needed to enhance performance based upon this assessment process. In addition, the members of each board committee self-assess the effectiveness of their committee and its chair by completing a confidential survey. The survey is reviewed by the chair of each respective committee and reported to the board as to committee effectiveness. The effectiveness of the chair of each committee is reviewed by the board chair and reported to the board. |
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| 20. | Service on Other Boards Directors will not sit on boards of corporations competing with Cameco nor be members of organizations or groups adverse in interest to Cameco without the permission of the board. |
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| 21. | Changes in Job Responsibility When a director's principal occupation or business association changes substantially from the position he or she held when originally invited to join the board, the director shall promptly offer his or her resignation to the board chair. The nominating, corporate governance and risk committee will consider the change in circumstance and recommend to the board whether the resignation should be accepted. |
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| 22. | Outside Communication with Independent Directors Interested parties may contact the board chair or other independent directors as a group by contacting the board chair by mailing (by regular mail or other means of delivery) to the corporate head office at 2121 11th St. W., Saskatoon, SK S7M 1J3, Canada, a sealed envelope marked "Private and Strictly Confidential – Attention: Chair of the Board of Directors of Cameco Corporation." Any such envelope shall be delivered unopened to the board chair. |
Leadership Development
| 23. | Duties and Responsibilities of the Chief Executive Officer The board has adopted a position description for the chief executive officer of the corporation, which sets out the duties and responsibilities of the chief executive officer. This position description (attached as Appendix C to these guidelines) will be reviewed from time to time. |
| 24. | Management Succession Planning The human resources and compensation committee annually reviews the corporation's succession plan. As well, annually the board receives a formal presentation of the succession plan The committee also ensures that processes are in place for the development of leaders at Cameco for management succession. The board creates opportunities for directors to become acquainted with employees who have the potential to become members of senior management. Such opportunities may include presentations to the board by these employees or interaction with them on social occasions. |
| 25. | Management Evaluation and Compensation All compensation policies and programs for Cameco executive officers (including chief executive officer and senior vice-presidents) are reviewed by the human resources and compensation committee and recommended to the board for approval. The compensation policies and programs link executive compensation to corporate performance and the creation of sustained shareholder value. The committee reviews the annual performance of the chief executive officer and performance assessments of the senior vice-presidents provided by the chief executive officer, all in light of the corporation's performance, then recommends compensation awards for the chief executive officer and senior vice-presidents to the board for approval. The committee also recommends to the board for approval the corporate annual goals and objectives which become the chief executive officer's specific annual goals and objectives. In conducting management evaluation and determining management compensation, the human resources and compensation committee will retain outside advisors independent of management, as necessary. |
Committee Matters
| 26. | Board Committees General: The board will carry out its responsibilities directly and through the following committees and such other committees as it may establish from time to time: the reserves oversight committee, the audit committee, the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee, the human resources and compensation committee and the safety, health and environment committee. Composition: The audit committee, nominating, corporate governance and risk committee and human resources and compensation committee will be comprised solely of "independent directors" who are selected by the board on the recommendation of the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee. Audit committee members will also meet the financial literacy and accounting and financial expertise requirements set out in applicable securities laws with one member, when possible, qualifying as an audit committee financial expert. The safety, health and environment committee and reserves oversight committee will each be comprised of a majority of "independent directors" who are selected by the board on the recommendation of the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee. Chair: Each committee of the board will be chaired by a director who is selected by the board on the recommendation of the nominating, corporate governance and risk committee. The committee chair is responsible for determining the agenda and the frequency and conduct of meetings. |
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| 27. | Mandates Audit Committee: The audit committee's role is to assist the board of directors in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities for the accounting and financial reporting process, internal controls, external auditors (including performance, qualifications, independence and audit of the corporation's financial statements), performance of the internal audit functions and compliance with laws and regulations (other than environment and safety). The audit committee makes recommendations to the board respecting the above matters. Human Resources and Compensation Committee: The human resources and compensation committee makes recommendations to the board respecting board and senior management compensation and contractual arrangements, succession planning and the human resources policies for the corporation. It reviews executive compensation disclosure before this information is publicly disclosed. It is responsible for pension plan governance, including oversight of the management of the corporation's pension plans. Nominating, Corporate Governance and Risk Committee: The nominating, corporate governance and risk committee makes recommendations to the board for the nomination of directors and committee members and assesses the effectiveness of the board of directors and its committees. It has responsibility for evaluating and advising the board on the corporation's approach to corporate governance and oversight for risk management. It also has responsibility for overseeing compliance with the corporation's code of conduct and ethics. |
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| 28. | Audit Committee Independence In addition to satisfying the board independence criteria, directors who are members of the audit committee will not be considered independent for the purpose of membership on the audit committee if:
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| 29. | Outside Communication with Audit Committee Interested parties may contact the audit committee chair by mailing (by regular mail or other means of delivery) to the corporate head office at 2121 11th St. W., Saskatoon, SK S7M 1J3, Canada, a sealed envelope marked "Private and Strictly Confidential – Attention: Chair of the Audit Committee of Cameco Corporation." Any such envelope shall be delivered unopened to the audit committee chair. |
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| 30. | Audit Committee Financial Experts Each audit committee member shall be financially literate with at least one member having accounting or related financial expertise, where: "financially literate" means the ability to read and understand a set of financial statements that present a breadth and level of complexity of accounting issues that are generally comparable to the breadth and complexity of issues that can be reasonably expected to be raised by the corporation's financial statements; and "accounting or related financial expertise " means the ability to analyse and interpret a full set of financial statements, including the notes attached thereto, in accordance with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles. In addition, where possible, at least one member of the committee shall also qualify as an "audit committee financial expert" within the meaning of applicable securities law. |
Board and Committee Meeting Procedures
| 31. | Sessions of Non-management Directors The directors are to meet separately at every regularly scheduled board meeting without management present. The chair shall inform management of the substance of these meetings to the extent that action is required by them. |
| 32. | Sessions of Independent Directors The "independent directors" (as defined in Appendix A to these guidelines) are to meet separately from non-independent directors and management at least once a year. |
| 33. | Calling Meetings Board meetings will be scheduled in advance at appropriate intervals throughout the year. In addition to regularly scheduled board meetings, additional board meetings will be called upon proper notice at any time to address specific needs of the corporation. The board may also take action from time to time by unanimous written consent. A board meeting may be called by the chair, the chief executive officer or any two directors. In the case of the audit committee, a meeting may also be called by external auditors, internal auditor or chief financial officer. In the case of all other committees, a meeting of any committee may be called by the chair, chief executive officer, committee chair or any other committee member. Each committee will meet as often as it determines is necessary to fulfill its responsibilities. Board meetings will be held at a location determined by the chair and meetings of each committee are held at a location determined by the committee chair. |
| 34. | Board Materials Distributed in Advance The board is to receive regular monthly reports on the financial results and activities of the corporation. Under normal circumstances, the agenda and pertinent information are to be distributed to directors at least seven days before each board or committee meeting. |
