Kazakhstan, Astana, July 23 /Trend D.Mukhtarov/
Working visit of President of the Board of the national atomic company of Kazakhstan Kazatomprom Vladimir Shkolnik in Canada was held last week. The visit was aimed at expanding and deepening of the Kazakh-Canadian cooperation in the field of uranium mining and processing, Kazakh Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
The head of Kazatomprom met with the president of the Canadian mining company Cameco Corporation Tim Gittselem during the visit. The sides discussed prospects for expanding bilateral cooperation, including in the framework of uranium mining JV Inkai (South Kazakhstan), in which 40 percent of the shares are owned by Kazatomprom and 60 percent - Cameco Corporation.
Production volumes of this joint venture reached two thousand tons of uranium per year. Both sides expressed readiness for the implementation of new ambitious projects in uranium mining and processing.
"The visit of the head of the national atomic company of Kazakhstan to Canada confirmed the intention of leading uranium companies of both countries to reach a new stage of mutually beneficial cooperation, which envisages the development of partnership in refining production, and further conversion of uranium ore for the production of fuel for nuclear power plants," the statement said.
The main condition for the transfer of advanced technologies in the field of refining and conversion of uranium is the signing of the Canadian-Kazakh intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear energy. This issue was also discussed during the negotiations between head of Kazatomprom and Vice-President of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission Terry Jameson. The sides expressed mutual interest in the early signing of the contract.
As a result of the Toronto talks both sides expressed their intention to actively develop mutually beneficial cooperation in the field of uranium mining and the peaceful use of nuclear energy.