Cameco shuts production for 10 months at 2 Saskatchewan sites, 845 jobs affected

Cameco (TSX:CCO) said 845 jobs would be “temporarily” lost by the end of January due to the shutdowns at Key Lake and McArthur River (pictured). (Photo: Cameco Corporation website)

SASKATOON—Workers at two uranium facilities in northern Saskatchewan are facing tough times after Cameco announced Wednesday it was shutting down productions at the Sask. sites.

Cameco (TSX:CCO) said 845 jobs would be “temporarily” lost by the end of January due to the shutdowns at Key Lake and McArthur River.

The McArthur River site mines uranium ore and sends it to Key Lake for processing.

The company said about 210 workers would be kept on at the facilities to ensure they maintained a safe shutdown mode.

The suspension is expected to last 10 months, but more details are to be provided when fourth quarter results are released in February.

Cameco cited market oversupply and low uranium prices as reasons for the production suspension.

They noted prices have fallen over 70 per cent since an earthquake and tsunami in Fukushima, Japan devastated a nuclear facility in 2011.

Operations at Rabbit Lake were suspended in April 2016, resulting in 500 job losses.

The company announced third-quarter losses of $124 million on Oct. 27, one year after turning a profit of $142 million in the same time span.