RSS
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, May 8, 1997
In response to national and international media coverage of negotiations involving Cameco Corporation, Cogema, a French state-owned entity, and the Russian Federation Ministry of Atomic Energy (Minatom) concerning fuel-grade uranium derived from the dismantling of Russian nuclear weapons, Cameco confirms it is involved in discussions with Minatom on alternative proposals for the disposition of this uranium but that no agreement has been concluded. Cameco notes discussions have been ongoing since 1993.
The uranium under discussion became available following the announcement, in 1993, of a 20-year agreement between the United States and Russia to dismantle nuclear weapons and make the material available to the market for nuclear power plants.
The uranium involves the equivalent of about 400 million pounds U3O8, representing less than three years of western world uranium consumption. (In 1996, nuclear power plants in the western world consumed about 145 million pounds U3O8.) In addition, sales of this material are governed by previously announced US legislation which limits the annual volumes entering the United States market, beginning with a maximum 2 million pounds in 1998, rising gradually to 20 million pounds by the year 2009. Limitations Cameco notes that in all its published assessments of uranium supply and demand, (most recently, its 1996 annual report, page 10) uranium from dismantled nuclear weapons (both Russian and American) referred to as highly enriched uranium or HEU, is accounted for.
Discussions among the parties will continue and until an agreement is concluded, no other particulars can be confirmed.
Cameco, with its head office in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, is the world's largest publicly traded uranium company and a growing gold producer. Its uranium products are used to generate electricity in nuclear power plants around the world, providing one of the cleanest sources of energy available today.
For further information, please contact:
Elaine Kergoat
Manager, Media & Public Relations
Cameco Corporation
Phone: (306) 956-6315
Fax: (306) 956-6318