The Latest Breaking News from Orano

French nuclear multinational Orano will suspend production at its Arlit uranium mine in northern Niger due to financial difficulties faced by its Nigerien subsidiary, Somaïr. The decision comes as border closures between Niger and Benin, triggered by the July 2023 coup, have blocked all uranium exports.

French nuclear giant Orano ended the first half of the year with a loss of €133 million, weighed down by difficulties in its mining activities in Niger due to a "highly degraded" political context since a military regime came to power a year ago.

Niger has revoked the operating licence of French nuclear fuel producer Orano at one of the world's biggest uranium mines, the company said Thursday, in a move that highlighted tensions between France and the African country's ruling junta.

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in uranium-rich Kazakhstan on Wednesday on the first leg of a trip to Central Asia, a region long regarded as Russia's backyard that has drawn fresh Western attention since the war in Ukraine began. His main aim: securing raw materials and possibly a lucrative contract…

Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh begins a visit to France Tuesday during which he is expected to discuss uranium mining and sign deals on energy and telecommunications. He will also open a controversial exhibition.

The coup in Niger has prompted concerns the West African country could curtail uranium exports, possibly hamstringing nuclear power production in France and beyond. But so far, source diversification and well-stocked inventories should be able to mitigate any disruptions in the short term, experts say.

Mining operations continue in Niger, world’s seventh largest producer of uranium, despite last week’s military takeover.

French nuclear group Orano has evacuated 18 expatriate workers from a uranium mining site in Arlit, northern Niger, to the capital Niamey on Friday, following a security threat, a spokesperson for the company said in statement to Reuters.

Ukraine's 12-year deal to buy enough uranium from Canadian miner Cameco Corp to power all of its nuclear reactors gives each side the right to change sales volumes with two years' notice, the Ukrainian state-owned utility Energoatom told Reuters.