The market is benefiting from more countries committing to building and expanding their nuclear energy supply. Investors are also recognizing the value in the reliable, clean electricity that uranium can produce.
The list below provides an overview of the five largest uranium companies by market cap. All data was current as of September 18, 2024. Read on to learn about these stocks and their operations.
Market cap: US$135.42 billion
While BHP shelved plans to expand the Olympic Dam mine in 2020, opting instead to invest in the existing infrastructure at the underground site, the company is currently evaluating options for a new two stage smelter, with a final investment decision expected between its 2026 and 2027 fiscal years.
Market cap: US$17.53 billion
The company also owns 70 percent of the McArthur River mine and 83 percent of the Key Lake mill. Orano Canada is Cameco’s primary joint venture partner across these operations.
Production in Q2 was up year-over-year to 6.2 million pounds. While year-to-date deliveries of 13.5 million pounds were slightly lower than in 2023, Cameco maintained its annual guidance of 32 million to 34 million pounds.
Market cap: US$3.21 billion
NexGen Energy, a company specializing in uranium exploration and development, is primarily focused on the Athabasca Basin. Its flagship project is the Rook I project, which includes significant discoveries such as Arrow and South Arrow.
Sustaining capital costs are projected at C$785 million, averaging C$70 million per year, including closure costs. The statement noted that the cost adjustments account for inflation, engineering advancements and improved environmental performance.
Market cap: US$2.03 billion
Uranium Energy (UEC) has two production-ready in-situ recovery (ISR) uranium projects — its Christensen Ranch uranium operations in Wyoming and its Texas Hub and Spoke operations in South Texas — as well as two operational processing facilities. It plans to restart uranium production in Wyoming in August and resume South Texas operations in 2025.
Market cap: US$1.84 billion
Paladin Energy holds the title of the largest ASX-listed primary uranium miner. The company owns a 75 percent stake in the Langer Heinrich uranium mine in Namibia and has exploration projects in Canada and Australia.
Paladin will now focus on ramping up output and building inventory for customer shipments.
A hearing regarding the contentious plan of order will be held before the Supreme Court of British Columbia on September 26, 2024.
First discovered in 1789 by German chemist Martin Klaproth, uranium is a heavy metal that is as common in the Earth’s crust as tin, tungsten and molybdenum. Named after the planet Uranus, which was also discovered around the same time, uranium has been an important source of global energy for more than six decades.
Australia and Kazakhstan lead the world in both terms of uranium reserves and uranium production. Australia takes first prize for the world’s largest uranium reserves, representing 28 percent globally at 1,684,100 MT of U3O8. However, the Oceanic country ranks fourth in global uranium production, putting out 4,087 MT of U3O8 in 2022.
For its part, Kazakhstan controls 13 percent of global uranium reserves and leads the world in uranium production with 2022 output of 21,227 MT. Last year, Canada passed Namibia to become the second largest uranium producer, putting out 7,351 MT of U3O8 in 2022 compared to Namibia’s 5,613 MT. The countries hold 10 percent and 8 percent of global reserves respectively.
Securities Disclosure: I, Georgia Williams, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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