Uranium miner Cameco reports $61 million loss in Q3

Despite posting a loss in its latest financial statement, Cameco says it continues to be optimistic about the future.

On Wednesday, the Saskatoon-based uranium company reported a net loss of $61 million for Q3 2020.

The company said the losses can be partially attributed to its decision to close the Cigar Lake mine in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in March.

"As expected, our results continue to be impacted by the pro-active operational decisions taken earlier this year," said Tim Gitzel, Cameco's president and CEO, in a news release.

"We believe that the actions we have taken to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus are prudent and reflect our values placing priority on the health and safety of our employees, their families and their communities."

Cameco said the mine was successfully reopened in September, on schedule.

The company said Cigar Lake would only stay open if it could do so safely long term. It hopes to produce 5.3 million pounds from the mine in 2020.

Cameco said part of this quarter's losses can also be attributed to normal variations in contract deliveries of uranium.

The company said it was optimistic about the fundamentals of the uranium industry.

"We see demand for nuclear growing driven by an increasing focus on electrification and the recognition that to achieve this while still meeting clean-air and climate change goals, nuclear will be needed in the toolbox," read the release.

As of Sept. 30, the company had $793 milion in cash and short-term investments and $1 billion in long-term debt.

The company has declared an annual dividend of $0.08 per common share.