Message from our CEO

At Cameco, we strive to make a difference in all we do. Whether it is globally by contributing to the energy transition, locally in the communities in which we operate, or individually in our interactions with each other.

I am pleased to share our 2021 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report which includes our practices and performance for the year and provides an outlook on the targets we have set for ourselves. This report allows us to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to integrating ESG into all aspects of our business and advancing our performance.

One of the most significant ways we make a difference is by continually working towards our vision of energizing a clean- air world. As many countries and companies move away from fossil-fuelled electricity generation and make commitments to achieve net-zero emissions, nuclear power – and Cameco along with it – are receiving increased attention. To meet net-zero commitments, demand for uranium from a safe, reliable supplier country is expected to rise. Canada’s new Critical Minerals List that includes uranium, among other minerals required for a green and digital economy, is just another vote of confidence for the role that nuclear power can play in the energy transition. Along with Canada, several other nations, including the US, France and the UK, have reaffirmed their commitment to nuclear power, are developing plans to support existing reactor units and are reviewing their policies to encourage more nuclear capacity.

Several other non-nuclear countries have emerged as candidates for new nuclear capacity, and even in countries with phase-out policies, there is growing debate about the role of nuclear power, with public opinion polls showing growing support. I am optimistic to see that level of positive momentum for our industry. Aided by this momentum, we are now in the process of restarting our operations at McArthur River and Key Lake, and are investing in digital and automation technologies that will support more efficient and even safer operations.

At Cameco, we support climate action that is consistent with the ambition of the Paris Agreement and the Canadian government’s commitment to the agreement to limit global temperature rise to less than 2°C. We know that this means the world needs to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 or sooner. Our role in the energy transition starts “at home”. This year we have enhanced our reporting in alignment with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, and our climate transition working group is working hard to develop a low-carbon transition plan that we expect to report on in 2023.

We also make a difference through continued safe operations. The last several years have seen sustained investor attention on tailings management practices and, most recently, pressure to achieve global alignment on tailings management practices Cameco remains committed to the Mining Association of Canada’s tailings management protocol, which is a comprehensive and mature framework adopted in Canada and several other countries including Finland, Argentina, Brazil, Norway and Australia. We are proud to be active participants in MAC’s tailings working group, which seeks to improve these already strong practices. I was also pleased to hear from our independent tailings review board which, in 2021, found our tailings facilities to be in sound condition and being managed consistent with sound engineering practices. We will work to incorporate the recommendations from the independent tailings review board to further enhance our tailings management practices.Several other non-nuclear countries have emerged as candidates for new nuclear capacity, and even in countries with phase-out policies, there is growing debate about the role of nuclear power, with public opinion polls showing growing support. I am optimistic to see that level of positive momentum for our industry. Aided by this momentum, we are now in the process of restarting our operations at McArthur River and Key Lake, and are investing in digital and automation technologies that will support more efficient and even safer operations.

One of the ways I’m personally focused on making a difference is by positively impacting the lives of the individuals and communities around our operations. Right from the start, Cameco has had a significant focus on working closely and collaboratively with Indigenous Peoples and local communities.In 2021, we continued to strengthen these relationships. An example is our collaboration to develop and deliver 15 online courses focused on building digital skills and getting individuals ready to work in our industry. About 200 community members (approximately one- third are women) are currently enrolled in the courses, which aimto build capacity and employability within northern Saskatchewan communities. This work supports skills development and advances our efforts to maintain both our strong Indigenous employment record and our important relationships with northern and Indigenous communities in Saskatchewan.

When I look back on 2021, I think of the incredible perseverance of our people. 2021 marked the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic, during which we proactively suspended production at Cigar Lake for a second time and introduced additional safety protocols to protect our workforce and our communities, especially the remote ones. We also faced a particularly extreme wildfire season in Saskatchewan, yet experienced minimal disruption to our operations, which confirmed we had strong safety and emergency preparedness practices. Despite the challenges, we recorded the best safety performance in our history, as measured by recordable injury rates. In so many different ways our people have stepped up and demonstrated persistence and dedication. They have shown that they believe in what we are doing, that there is a future for our company, and that energizing a clean-air world is really something worth working towards.

To continue supporting our people, over the past year we have been working on building our culture and fostering a more inclusive workplace. In 2021, more than 90% of our employees participated virtually in culture workshops. These workshops provided a forum for interaction and means of gathering candid feedback about where the company is today. We also established an inclusion and diversity committee and provided respectful workplace and unconscious bias training to employees. We recognize, however, that we need to reflect society as it is today and increase our focus on underrepresented groups. One way we are working on this is by increasing our focus on diversity in our hiring as we restart our mines that were previously in care and maintenance. In the coming years we will be working towards our diversity and inclusion targets and will share our progress.

As we move forward, I'd like to thank our board of directors for providing strong oversight and showing trust and confidence in our executive team. I would also like to thank our employees. We have asked a lot of them for many years and they have delivered every time. I believe we’ve got some of the best people in the industry and I want to remind them that they make a difference every day.

Tim Gitzel
President and Chief Executive Officer

Our strong safety and emergency preparedness practices were instrumental in protecting our Cigar Lake site and assets through a particularly extreme wildfire season in 2021. Radiation Protection Officer Vaughn Beaudin (left) and Safety Officer James Flett (right) – members of the McArthur River Operation Mine Rescue team – show some of the personal protective equipment used.