Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) executives said the company delivered a “strong finish” to 2025 and reiterated a strategy of disciplined contracting and supply management as the nuclear fuel cycle continues to tighten, even as long-term uranium contracting volumes remain below replacement-rate levels.
On the company’s fourth-quarter 2025 results conference call, CEO Tim Gitzel said the year reflected “disciplined execution across the organization,” supported by contributions from Cameco’s uranium and fuel services businesses and continued value creation from its investment in Westinghouse. Gitzel recorded introductory remarks ahead of the call as he traveled to Washington, D.C., for meetings related to Cameco’s recently announced reactor partnership discussions with the U.S. government.
2025 financial results and balance sheet
He added that Cameco ended the year with about CAD 1.2 billion in cash and short-term investments and CAD 1.0 billion in total debt, describing the balance sheet as a “core strength” supported by consistent cash flow generation.
Uranium contracting strategy and 2026 uranium outlook
Management emphasized that, despite strengthening demand narratives for nuclear power, the company is not willing to commit large volumes of uranium at what it views as current economics. Gitzel said 2025 long-term contracting volumes across the market “remained below replacement rate levels,” and President and COO Grant Isaac later cited 2025 industry term contracting of 116 million pounds as “well short of replacement rate.”
Gitzel said Cameco is selectively adding to its long-term contract portfolio with terms that provide downside protection while maintaining exposure to improving demand. Entering 2026, he said Cameco has commitments to deliver an average of about 28 million pounds annually over the next five years and ended 2025 with approximately 230 million pounds committed under long-term contracts.
For 2026, Cameco guided to:
- Uranium production: 19.5 million to 21.5 million pounds
- Uranium deliveries: 29 million to 32 million pounds
- Average realized uranium price: CAD 85 to CAD 89
Asked why the realized price outlook appears relatively flat year over year, Isaac said the company’s “discipline” is reflected in a measured pace of contracting and production. He said Cameco is being “very fussy” on volumes and contract terms and is preserving uncommitted pounds for a market that reaches replacement-rate contracting, which management views as the point where “real price appreciation comes.”
Operations: Cigar Lake, McArthur River/Key Lake, and JV Inkai
Gitzel said consolidated uranium production in 2025 totaled 21 million pounds, exceeding revised annual guidance. He said Cigar Lake produced above expectations, while McArthur River and Key Lake delivered in line with revised plans following development delays earlier in the year.
Management also described how Cameco used multiple “supply levers” to meet delivery commitments, including inventory, loans, spot purchases “when appropriate,” and committed long-term purchases such as production from its JV Inkai asset in Kazakhstan.
On JV Inkai, Gitzel said the operation met its annual production target in 2025 despite a “rocky start” and a pause in production in January of last year. Cameco took delivery of 3.7 million pounds as its share of 2025 production, plus 900,000 pounds that remained in Kazakhstan from its share of 2024 production. For 2026, management said JV Inkai plans to ramp to full capacity of 10.4 million pounds, with Cameco’s share at 4.2 million pounds, accounted for as a committed purchase.
Analysts also pressed Cameco on McArthur River’s 2026 outlook. Isaac said the company is sticking to the plan it put in place in September 2025 after previously disclosed delays and does not have an incentive to accelerate development in a market that has not yet reached replacement-rate contracting. He characterized the approach as systematic mine development pacing tied to market signals rather than “heroic action.”
In response to questions about technical risks cited in the MD&A, Isaac said factors such as encountering a clay zone that slowed the installation of freeze capacity contributed to the earlier timeline adjustments. He said those risks have not increased, but the company is taking a measured response that aligns with its marketing and demand strategy.
Fuel services and conversion market: high prices, focus on contract tenor
Gitzel said Cameco’s fuel services segment delivered another strong year in 2025, including record UF6 production at Port Hope. He said conversion pricing remains at “historically high levels,” supported by tight supply, growing demand, and an increased focus on security of supply.
For 2026, management guided to fuel services production of 13 million to 14 million kilograms of uranium product, with deliveries expected to match production.
When asked about conversion contracting in a tight market, Isaac said price is only one part of negotiations and emphasized the importance of contract tenor. He said Cameco wants to secure historic pricing “for as long as possible,” arguing that suppliers “only get one chance to sell new capacity” before additional supply additions reduce market leverage. Isaac cited expected supply changes across the industry, including ConverDyn returning online and efforts to increase production at Port Hope, as well as pressure on other facilities to restart or reach full capacity.
Westinghouse: guidance framework, new build “lumpiness,” and U.S. partnership progress
Gitzel said Cameco’s investment in Westinghouse exceeded acquisition-case expectations in 2025, with strong underlying performance and a significant increase in adjusted EBITDA. He noted Cameco received cash distributions related to results and an additional distribution tied in part to Westinghouse’s participation in a Korean nuclear project in the Czech Republic, while cautioning that comparable distributions are not expected in 2026.
For 2026, Cameco guided its share of adjusted EBITDA from Westinghouse at approximately $370 million to $430 million, which management said would be lower than 2025 in part because Cameco recognized a $170 million payment (its share) in the second quarter of 2025 related to the Korean reactor project in Czechia. Executives repeatedly highlighted that new build activity can create “lumpiness” in results.
Isaac provided a framework for how new build projects could affect Westinghouse results, saying that on a per-reactor basis the engineering and procurement scope could represent roughly $400 million to $600 million in EBITDA for each reactor built, noting that projects are often executed in “two-packs.” He also discussed a long list of potential AP1000 opportunities globally, including the United States, Canada, Poland, and Bulgaria, while emphasizing Cameco does not include projects in forward guidance until they reach final investment decision.
On the U.S. partnership announced in the fourth quarter among Cameco, Brookfield, Westinghouse, and the U.S. government, Isaac said work is continuing from the term sheet signed in October. He described several parallel workstreams, including identifying sites and project models for “two-packs,” determining the sequence of long-lead item orders, and securing financing tied to foreign direct investment commitments. He said the effort is being shaped by a goal that “10 large nuclear power plants have to be under construction by 2030,” and said Cameco believes there is “a good chance” of seeing a long-lead item order as part of the program in 2026.
Isaac also said the separation of long-lead item procurement from final site/model decisions could shift the timing of revenue and margin recognition, potentially bringing procurement-related flows earlier than the company’s typical project framework.
Global Laser Enrichment and U.S. government engagement
In response to a question about additional opportunities with the U.S. government across the fuel chain, Isaac said Cameco has long maintained strong U.S. government relationships, including interest in its Global Laser Enrichment (GLE) initiative and a Department of Energy tails re-enrichment program involving depleted UF6.
Isaac said the GLE technology’s science is “de-risked,” citing achievement of TRL 6, and that remaining steps involve proving reliability at commercial scale for competitive capital and operating costs (TRL 7 through 9). He said Cameco’s focus is on the DOE tails re-enrichment opportunity, which he characterized as an above-ground source of uranium and conversion at a time of scarcity.
Closing the call, Isaac said Cameco believes it is well positioned to support nuclear growth while protecting and extending asset value, reiterating management’s view that supply risks remain greater than demand risks.
About Cameco (NYSE:CCJ)
Cameco Corporation (NYSE: CCJ) is a leading producer of uranium and a supplier to the global nuclear power industry. Headquartered in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, the company is engaged in the exploration, mining, milling and sale of uranium concentrate, commonly known as yellowcake, which is used as fuel for nuclear reactors. Cameco also participates in services and activities that support the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle, including processing and marketing of uranium to utilities under long‑term and spot contracts.
The company’s operations have historically centered in Canada and the United States, where it operates and develops uranium mining and processing properties.
