Cameco (TSX:CCO,NYSE:CCJ) has secured a nine-year uranium supply agreement with India worth an estimated US$2.6 billion, accelerating its nuclear power expansion as it deepens critical mineral ties with the country.
The Saskatoon-based uranium producer will supply nearly 22 million pounds of uranium ore concentrate (U3O8) to India’s Department of Atomic Energy between 2027 and 2035 under market-related pricing terms.
Cameco Chief Executive Officer Tim Gitzel attended a signing event in New Delhi alongside Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe.
“Cameco is proud to be a strategic partner with India to help meet its civil nuclear fuel needs and support its trade relationship with Canada,” Gitzel said. “India is embarking on an ambitious nuclear expansion to power its development plans and meet the future energy security needs of its people. That isn’t possible without a stable supply of uranium fuel.”
India currently operates 24 nuclear reactors and has outlined plans to deploy dozens more as it works toward a target of 100 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2047.
The new agreement revives a trading relationship first established in 2015, when Cameco began supplying uranium to India under a five-year contract.
Gitzel also pointed to broader market dynamics. “Importantly, this demand underscores an emerging trend of sovereign buyers locking up large volumes from multiple suppliers, and in a window where demand continues to grow and available supplies continue to become more uncertain and constrained.”
Cameco operates the Cigar Lake and McArthur River/Key Lake uranium mines in northern Saskatchewan. According to the Saskatchewan Mining Association, uranium mining employs more than 2,300 people in the province, with nearly half of the workforce in northern operations drawn from local communities.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said the contract would benefit both countries. “It’s going to be good for the electricity outbuild here in India as well as good for the economy in particular in northern Saskatchewan,” he told reporters in New Delhi as reported by CBC.
India continues to recently take steps to broaden its critical minerals strategy. Last month, the country announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Brazil to deepen cooperation on rare earths and other critical minerals.
“Increasing investments and cooperation in matters of renewable energy and critical minerals is at the core of a pioneering agreement that we have signed today,” Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said at the time.
The country’s multibillion deal with Cameco first sparked rumors back in late 2025, when an earlier meeting between the two state leaders signaled the thawing of diplomatic tensions that started in 2023.
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
