Name and Location
Cigar Lake uranium mine project, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Client
Cigar Lake is owned by Cameco (50%), Areva (37%), Idemitsu Canada Resources (8%) and Tokyo Electric Power Company Resources (5%).

Project Description
Cigar Lake is the second-biggest high-grade uranium deposit in the world.

The Cigar Lake orebody will be frozen before it is mined to prevent water inflow and ground conditions and radiation protection.

The project will remove high-grade ore using the jet boring system, a nonentry method that will be deployed within access tunnels about 25 m beneath the orebody.

Jet boring involves using water under high pressure to carve out cavities in the orebody and collecting the resulting ore slurry through pipes. The Cigar Lake mining process also entails backfilling the cavities in the orebody with concrete once the ore is removed.

Value
Not stated.

Duration
Production is scheduled to begin in 2013.

Latest Developments
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has granted a uranium mining licence authorising the construction and operation of the Cigar Lake project.

The licence is valid from July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2021.

The licensed facilities include underground mine workings accessed by two mine shafts, a surface load-out, waste management and associated facilities.

Cameco expects to begin jet boring in the third quarter, with the first packaged pounds expected in the fourth quarter of this year.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
The project is on track to start production in mid-2013.

Contact Details for Project Information
Cameco director of investor relations Rachelle Girard, tel +1 306 956 6403.
Areva, tel +331 34 96 12 15, fax +331 34 96 16 54 or email press@areva.com.