Cameco Cigar Lake technical update and obligatory reading before buying more shares

Cameco has issued updates on progress at their Cigar Lake property.  For basic information on the mine and its flooding take a look at the Cameco site itself.  (I particularly recommend the diagram of the underground mine workings.)   The most informative information I found regarding current conditions is at this site.  The share price increased on issue of the news release.  I may be a pessimist, or worse a cynic, but I see little in the report to justify an increase in the share price.  There are more cautionary statements and there is more wriggle room in the reports I read than there is solid technical information justifying paying more for a future promise.  Let us examine some technical uncertainties. 

Alaska’s new mines hang on the outcome of the battles and brawls of the rich and famous

Both the Pebble Mine and the Kensington Mine in Alaska promise to redefine the way we think about mining and the way mines in the United States are permitted and operated.   The questions is, however, do these two mines represent instances of objective democratic debate or are they gladiatorial contests between rich and opinionated men?   Will the ultimate outcome at these two mines represent the rule of law dispensed by a blind-folded lady holding scales, or will the outcome be dictated by a public-caesar’s thumb up or down.  And will the thumb go the way the battle goes? 

Alaska’s Kensington Mine loses court battle to place tailings in a lake

Today we read that “A perceived end run by Coeur d’AleneMines and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers against a federal court injunction may have cost Coeur Alaska the ability to dispose of the Kensington gold into a nearby freshwater lake.” This statement is a follow up to the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in the Kensington gold mine (Coeur d’AleneMines) permit challenge. The court reversed a lower federal court decision and vacated the permits associated with a tailings facility at the Kensington gold mine in Alaska. Coeur Alaska had obtained its Section 404 Army Corps of Engineers permit in 2005 for the placement of fill material at the mine, which is currently under construction.

Vatukoula Fiji II

If you are intrigued by the continuing saga of news about Vatukoula, Fiji, here is an (edited) extract from a report about the company, Westech that is buying the mine (The link to this report is broken. Here is what I  edited when I was able to access the site.):

Run by Brian and Amelia Wesson, Westech International Pty Ltd is a resource and energy company based in Sydney. Brian Wesson said the company designs mines and power stations. “It is a small company; we have about 20 employees dotted around the country. We take on a lot of contracts for various jobs. We also have interest in other mining companies, such as Queensland Mining Corporation.”