Areva Signs Uranium Deal With Mongolia

The Foreign Affairs Minister of France, Laurent Fabius, conducted a two-day visit to Mongolia on October 25 and 26, upon the invitation of his Mongolian counterpart, L.Bold.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius led the latest foreign investment delegation to visit Mongolia accompanied by an array of leaders of France’s biggest industrial companies.

The French industrials visiting Mongolia included nuclear developer Areva, pharmaceutical multinational Sanofi, and gas companies Air Liquide and GDF Suez, who see big opportunities as Mongolia continues to develop.

French nuclear energy giant Areva signed a deal with Mongolia’s state-owned Mon-Atom on October 26, to develop two uranium mines in the Gobi desert. According to the statement from Areva, the agreement would create a company that would be 66 percent owned by Areva and 34 owned by Mon-Atom, and Japan’s Mitsubishi Corporation would take an equity interest.

Further details of the deal, which was signed by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, were not immediately announced.

Foreign Affairs Minister Bold said the deal represented an important step for the resource-rich but still impoverished nation.

Areva, which has had a presence in Mongolia for more than 15 years, said that exploration work had discovered two uranium deposits with estimated reserves...