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

Client
The Cigar Lake mine is 50.03%-owned by operator Cameco and 37.1% by Areva, while Idemitsu Canada Resources and Tepco Resources own minority stakes.

Ore from Cigar Lake will be processed at the McClean Lake mill.

The mill is 70%-owned by Areva Resources Canada, while Denison Mines holds a 22.5% stake and Ourd Canada the remaining 7.5%.

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

It has total compliant proven and probable reserves of 537.1-million tonnes grading 18.3% uranium oxide (U₃O₈), containing 216.7-milion pounds of U₃O₈.

The Cigar Lake uranium deposit occurs at depths ranging from 410 m to 450 m
below the surface, where the water-saturated Athabasca sandstone meets the underlying basement rocks.

To prevent water from entering the production areas of the mine and to stabilise weak rock formations, the ore zone and surrounding ground will be frozen by circulating a brine solution through cased holes, drilled from surface and underground.

The jet-boring mining method was selected for the Cigar Lake deposit after extensive testing.

Operated from tunnels in the basement rock below the orebody, the method entails using high-pressure water jets to mine out cavities in the orebody.

Ore and water will be piped away from the cavities to underground processing circuits, where it will be ground, thickened and pumped to the surface for transportation to Areva Resources Canada’s McClean Lake mill for processing to uranium concentrate.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an estimated pretax net present value calculated from January 1, 2012, at an 8% discount rate, of $1.4 billion and a pretax internal rate of return of 32.8%.

Value
The project is estimated at C$2.6-billion.

Duration
Cameco expects Cigar Lake to ramp up to its full production rate of 18-million pounds by 2018.

Latest Developments
Cameco declared commercial production at its Cigar Lake operation on May 1.

Cameco has noted that commercial production signals a transition in the accounting treatment for costs incurred at the mine. During May, Cameco met all of the criteria for commercial production, including cycle time and process specifications. From May 1, all production costs, including depreciation, will be charged to inventory and subsequently recognised in cost of sales as the product is sold.

Mining at Cigar Lake began in March 2014, with the first packaged uranium concentrate available in October. The operation remains on track to achieve its 2015 production target of six-million to eight-million packaged pounds, on a 100% basis. The mine employed more than 600 highly skilled workers, with the majority residing in the north of Saskatchewan.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
The TSX- and NYSE-listed miner has suffered several setbacks in developing the mine over the years, as frequent flooding and problems with freezing the earth around the underground passages delayed production. Mining was suspended in July last year to allow for the orebody to freeze more thoroughly. Mining resumed in the first week of September, delivering ore to Areva Resources Canada’s McClean Lake mill.

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.