Uranium stocks rose this past week, but Cameco (CCJ) stands out from the group. The gains followed a recent nuclear power agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia. This deal opens the door for U.S. companies to sell reactor technology and nuclear equipment to Saudi Arabia, with most uranium firms benefiting from the news, but Cameco has another reason to rise that the others do not. The company is a uranium miner, so it benefits from the same wave lifting the sector. But it also owns 49% of Westinghouse, the company that builds the AP1000 reactor at the center of the Saudi deal. That puts Cameco in a much stronger position. It mines the uranium, supplies the reactor through Westinghouse, and shares in the decades of fuel and servicing each reactor would need afterwards.
The deal, however, is not final yet. It still needs a feasibility study and congressional review. President Donald Trump has also tied the deal to the condition that Saudi Arabia normalizes its relations with Israel. Building reactors takes years, so the money is a long way off as well.
