The French nuclear power group Areva on Tuesday completed the purchase of Canadian uranium producer UraMin, an acquisition it said should enable it to boost uranium output to 19,000 tonnes in 2012. Areva said that following an amicable public share offer on July 25 it now controlled 92.93 percent of UraMin capital. The deal valued UraMin at more than 2.5 billion dollars (1.8 billion euros. Areva had previously had a 5.5 percent stake in UraMin.
Areva said UraMin's operations in South Africa, Namibia and the Central African Republic should lead to an increase in uranium output of more than 7,000 tonnes a year after 2012.
Prior to the acquistion Areva said it planned to double uranium production to 12,000 tonnes by 2011-2012.
With the addition of UraMin, overall output should therefore come to about 19,000 tonnes a year starting in 2012, according to Areva's director of mining operations, Olivier Mallet.
Areva is now the world's third largest uranium producer after Cameco of Canada and the British-Australian group Rio Tinto.
Mallet said "preliminary discussions" had been held with Libya on measures that could support uranium exploration."
France has just signed a memorandum of understanding with Libya to study the possibility of building a nuclear reactor there for water desalination.
Source: Agence France-Presse
