Although it received widespread praise when the news reached back home, the recent uranium deal signed between Cameco and India does not sit well with the Saskatchewan Environmental Society.

The agreement will see Cameco supply nearly 22 million pounds of uranium ore concentrate to India over a nine-year period on market-related price terms, with a total contract value estimated at approximately $2.6 billion. SES board member Peter Prebble says this deal is quite concerning, as India is one of only a handful of countries that has not signed the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, which is a commitment to not to use uranium for atomic weapons purposes.

He explains that Canada and India did sign a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement in 2012, which stipulated that Canadian uranium must only be used for peaceful purposes. However, when Canada provides India with uranium, Prebble says it frees up the countries domestic supply for use in expanding its nuclear weapons arsenal.

“Canada is just being naive about the fact that it’s being used by India. While India uses its own domestic uranium, and it has a limited supply of that that it uses it for its weapons program, it’s able to buy Canadian uranium to run its nuclear reactors.”

Prebble says India now has more than 170 nuclear weapons, a number that has nearly doubled since 2012.

In an emailed response, Cameco stated that its products are used exclusively for peaceful purposes, as required by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and is a condition in every contract Cameco signs with customers purchasing uranium. It continues that “For Cameco’s contract with India’s Department of Atomic Energy, the uranium is strictly for use in India’s civil nuclear energy program.”