Nuclear Fuel Cycle (Uranium & Enrichment)

Xcite Uranium Inc. has commenced a 1300m, 6-hole diamond drilling program at Eagle Plains Resources Ltd.'s 100% owned Black Bay Project near Uranium City, Saskatchewan, and has procured a second drill rig to speed completion of the planned work. The program will test for structurally-controlled Beaverlodge-type and basement-hosted unconformity style uranium mineralization, targeting 2025 VTEM conductors along trend from the past-producing Black Bay Mine, with 6 holes from 5 pad locations and the second rig under contract to Base Diamond Drilling. The approved 2026 budget for Black Bay is approximately $1.1 million, comprising $125,000 in completed fieldwork and $975,000 allocated for drilling, with all work managed by TerraLogic Exploration Inc. The 1114ha project overlies 7 Saskatchewan Mineral Deposit Index occurrences including the past-producing Black Bay Uranium Mine, and sits within the six-project Xcite option agreement covering 54 SMDI occurrences and five past-producing uranium mines, under which Xcite may earn up to an 80% interest in each project by completing CDN$3,200,000 in exploration expenditures, issuing 750,000 common shares and paying CDN$55,000 over four years, for an aggregate of CDN$19,200,000 in exploration expenditures, 4,500,000 shares and $330,000 in cash to Eagle Plains. Historic trench samples at Black Bay include 6.51% U3O8, 3.78% U3O8 and 3.62% U3O8 over 0.3m, while grab samples from historical drill core at the Blue Grass 'B' Zone include 9.64% U3O8 and 16.74% U3O8. The Black Bay mine produced approximately 1375 tons of material at a grade of 0.17% U3O8 shipped to the Lorado custom mill between 1953 and 1960.

Uranium Energy Corp. reported fourth-quarter production of 82,744 pounds of U3O8, up 157% from the third quarter, as three new header houses at Christensen Ranch ran a full quarter and Burke Hollow in South Texas contributed its first full quarter. Total cost per pound across both mines dropped 33% to $36.54, and approval for four more header houses arrived on September 28, with production expected to start within weeks. The company sold 400,000 pounds from inventory at $93.13 per pound and still holds 1.256 million pounds worth about $109 million at spot prices, backed by $495 million in cash and no debt. Management declined to give formal production guidance because header house and wellfield approval timing is outside its control, and its refining subsidiary is still preparing its license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, with a cost estimate not expected until mid-2027. Hedge fund interest cooled to 26 funds holding the stock from 32 in the prior quarter, short interest stands at 14.60% of the float, and the forward P/E of 178.57 as of October 2 reflects expectations for a production base far larger than today's.

Azincourt Energy Corp. has completed prospecting and soil sampling across priority targets at its Harrier Project in Labrador's Central Mineral Belt and has commenced diamond drilling at the Snegamook uranium deposit. The 2026 drill program, which began in late September, is now expected to consist of approximately 2,000 metres in 6 to 7 drill holes at Snegamook, designed to provide geological and confirmatory information that may support evaluation of a potential future mineral resource estimate. The Harrier Project covers approximately 13,000 hectares across six licence groups, and the summer prospecting program identified two new uranium showings in the southern Boiteau Lake area and northwest of the Brook showing, bringing the total number of uranium showings on the property to 16. A 10 cm check sample from historical drill hole SN-08-06 returned a grade of 2.71% U3O8, while a sample from SN-08-18 returned 0.35% U3O8. CEO Mark Tommasi said the immediate focus is to test selected historical mineralized intervals at Snegamook while using the summer fieldwork to prioritize targets across the broader project.

NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary HALEU Energy Fuel Inc. have entered into a definitive asset purchase agreement with Radnostix, Inc., formerly International Isotopes Inc., and its subsidiary International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc. to acquire strategic U.S. nuclear fuel processing assets, including a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission license and related intellectual property and technical materials tied to a previously planned depleted uranium hexafluoride deconversion and fluorine extraction facility in Lea County, New Mexico. Upon completion of the transaction and transfer of the NRC license, NANO Nuclear would own one of ten NRC-licensed fuel cycle facilities in the United States. Under the agreement, consideration at closing is $9.5 million in cash and $4.0 million in NANO common stock, with closing subject to NRC consent to the license transfer, other required approvals and consents including from New Mexico officials, satisfactory site arrangements and other closing conditions, and the parties currently expect closing in approximately 90 to 120 days. The NRC license was originally issued to construct and operate the DUF6 deconversion and fluorine extraction facility, which was never built, and the acquisition also includes related patented technology, engineering and safety analyses, regulatory and permitting materials, equipment and historical project development records. NANO Nuclear said the existing licensed asset could offer a significantly more efficient regulatory pathway than developing and licensing a comparable facility on a new site, and that no final investment decision has been made on the optimal commercial and development pathway for the acquired assets.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump agreed that discussions on a strategic investment project between the two countries have made significant progress, after the two met for 30 minutes on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly yesterday. Wi Sung-lac, South Korea's national security adviser, said the two leaders also agreed to strengthen cooperation and continue discussions on various issues under the joint statement issued after their summit last November, including nuclear fuel reprocessing, nuclear-powered submarines, shipbuilding, and the transfer of wartime operational control of military forces from the United States to South Korea. Trump also reaffirmed his readiness to open negotiations with North Korea again, and the two leaders agreed to maintain close contact to advance the peace process. The meeting came after South Korea's Ministry of Industry reported to legislators yesterday on implementation plans under the two countries' 350 billion dollar investment package, which includes a gas-fired power plant in Texas identified as possibly the first investment project under the package, as well as the possibility of investment in nuclear energy and a liquefied natural gas project in Alaska. Wi said President Lee also views the US-China summit scheduled for Thursday as important for developments in the region, including South Korea-China relations, and expressed hope that the meeting will be successful.

NextEra Energy disclosed that it secured a US$1.90 billion U.S. Department of Energy loan to restart the Duane Arnold nuclear plant in Iowa, targeted to return to service in early 2029 subject to regulatory approvals and backed by a 25-year power purchase agreement with Google. The federally supported restart aligns NextEra with fast-growing AI-driven power demand and deepens its long-term relationship with a major technology offtaker. The company's narrative projects $39.0 billion revenue and $10.4 billion earnings by 2029, yielding a $98.55 fair value, a 24% upside to its current price, while some of the most optimistic analysts already assumed revenue could reach about US$45.2 billion and earnings US$11.6 billion by 2029. The Duane Arnold loan supports the thesis that large-scale clean and firm power will keep earning solid returns as electricity demand rises, though it does not fundamentally change the near-term focus on interest costs and policy risk around renewable incentives. Among recent announcements, the expanded Google collaboration around GW-scale data centers and AI-focused energy solutions feels most connected to Duane Arnold, highlighting how tightly NextEra is tying its growth story to hyperscale and AI-related demand.

Centrus Energy shares surged 7% in Monday's trading after The Wall Street Journal's Heard On The Street column praised the company's unique position and argued its shares deserve an energy security premium. Columnist Jinjoo Lee wrote that while Centrus shares peaked late last year before losing steam this year alongside other nuclear stocks, the company looks less speculative than other nuclear plays. The stock still is not cheap at 52x forward earnings, but Centrus' market cap is less than half that of X-Energy and Oklo, both small modular reactor companies that are nowhere near generating a profit. UxC President Jonathan Hinze said demand will not pose a problem even as incumbents Urenco and Orano expand or add enrichment capacity in the U.S., because utilities want diversification, and South Korean utility Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power has signed a long-term supply agreement with Centrus. Centrus expects most of its future enrichment revenues to come from low-enriched uranium used by conventional reactors, but it is the only company with a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license to produce the highly enriched uranium required by some new technologies, and it is the only enrichment company relying solely on domestically made components, making it the only player that can meet U.S. national security needs such as naval reactors.

Google has signed a 22-year agreement covering up to 50% of the capacity of Finland's Loviisa nuclear plant, supporting its life extension through 2050, as part of a €13 billion ($15.1 billion) investment in the country over 2027 and 2028 to expand digital infrastructure including data-center capacity. The deal reflects a broader hyperscaler trend in which Alphabet, Amazon.com Inc, Meta Platforms Inc and Microsoft Corp have all pursued nuclear power agreements or partnerships as AI pushes their electricity requirements higher, with a Carnegie analysis estimating those commitments could represent roughly 6.9 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by the early 2030s. Christo Liebenberg, co-founder and president of LIS Technologies, told Benzinga in an exclusive interview that hyperscalers are investing heavily in power purchase agreements with reactor companies but very little in fuel purchase agreements into the nuclear fuel supply chain. Liebenberg argues the U.S. has underbuilt several stages of the nuclear fuel chain, from uranium mining through conversion, enrichment and fuel fabrication, a gap particularly relevant for advanced reactors that may require specialized fuels such as HALEU. The U.S. government is already spending billions to rebuild domestic enrichment capacity, while companies including Centrus are developing additional production, and Liebenberg says Big Tech and the U.S. government will need to help fund that broader infrastructure if the nuclear buildout is to match rising electricity demand.

Westinghouse Electric is reportedly seeking a valuation of more than $50 billion for an initial public offering that could come as early as October, according to a Bloomberg report. The proposed valuation would be a boon for Cameco, which owns a 49% interest in Westinghouse and would see that stake worth over $24.5 billion, while co-owner Brookfield Renewable's 10.8% interest would be worth $5.4 billion. Cameco and Brookfield Renewable formed a strategic partnership to acquire Westinghouse from Brookfield Business in October 2022, closing in late 2023 in a deal valuing Westinghouse at $8.2 billion including $3.8 billion of debt, with Cameco paying $2.1 billion for its 49% equity stake. A wrinkle could dilute those values: the U.S. Government holds a participation interest entitling it to 20% of any cash distributions Westinghouse makes to investors above $17.5 billion, a claim worth roughly $6.5 billion at a $50 billion valuation. The valuation may prove difficult to achieve given a wave of nuclear stock IPOs this year, with X-Energy down more than 55% from its IPO high and Standard Nuclear down 22% from its peak, while Holtec Nuclear has already canceled its planned IPO.

The International Energy Agency projects that electricity demand from AI data centers will more than double between 2024 and 2030, rising from 415 terawatt-hours to 945 terawatt-hours, with demand reaching 1,200 terawatt-hours by 2035, nearly triple the 2024 figure. The IEA noted that AI electricity demand in 2030 will exceed Japan's current power use, and data center electricity use has been growing at 12% per year since 2017, more than four times the overall rate of consumption growth. Among the companies positioned to benefit, Bloom Energy entered 2026 with a product backlog of $6 billion, up 140% over 2025's starting backlog, plus a service backlog of $14 billion. Constellation Energy, one of the largest operators of nuclear power plants in the United States, is already working with AI companies including Meta and Microsoft, while Cameco expects nuclear fuel demand to outstrip supply by the mid-2030s. NextEra Energy is doubling down on AI and data centers with its pending acquisition of Dominion Energy, which holds a monopoly in one of the world's largest data center markets.

Centrus Energy Corp. reported on September 17 that it had signed a multi-year contract to supply high-assay low-enriched uranium, or HALEU, to Antares Nuclear, with deliveries expected to begin before the end of the decade. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the deal includes prepayments from Antares to help fund Centrus' expanded HALEU capacity. Antares is developing compact microreactors for critical missions on Earth and in space and was recently selected for the U.S. Army's Janus Program, a $2.2 billion initiative to build and operate tiny nuclear reactors on military bases. Centrus President and CEO Amir Vexler said the contract is another sign that demand for HALEU is real and accelerating, and that binding orders from Antares and others are supporting the company's expansion to commercial-scale production. The agreement adds to Centrus Energy's backlog of $4.5 billion as of the end of the second quarter, including about $3 billion of contingent LEU and HALEU sales commitments, of which around $2.4 billion are under definitive agreements. The deal's near-term impact remains limited, since the contract value, pricing and delivery volumes were not disclosed and deliveries are years away, while Centrus' first new commercial capacity is not expected online before 2029.

Westinghouse Electric is seeking a valuation of more than $50B in its U.S. initial public offering, with a filing targeted for as soon as October, though details including timing could still change, Bloomberg reported Friday. Citigroup and Goldman Sachs are leading the IPO, with CIBC, J.P. Morgan Chase and Royal Bank of Canada also working on the listing. Westinghouse is jointly owned by Brookfield Renewable Partners and Cameco, which completed a deal in 2023 to buy a 49% stake in the company at a roughly $8B value. The company looks set to benefit from the Trump administration's efforts to boost the U.S. nuclear industry, and the U.S. Army recently selected it as one of five firms to build, own and operate its power plants. Westinghouse's nuclear power technology is used by 57% of the world's nuclear reactors, and it has a pipeline of as many as 91 opportunities for its latest generation reactor.

Oklo, the microreactor developer that went public through a SPAC merger on May 10, 2024, is targeting deployment of its first Aurora Powerhouse microreactors in Idaho in late 2027 or early 2028, with analysts expecting revenue to rise to $2 million in 2026, $8 million in 2027, and $53 million in 2028. The Aurora generates only 1.5 MWe on its own but is designed to be deployed alongside additional microreactors to build plants capable of generating up to 75 MWe, far below the over 1,000 MWe of a conventional nuclear plant, though its modular, factory-prefabricated design suits remote, off-grid sites and data center operators. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved Oklo's Principal Design Criteria for the Aurora in June, and the company achieved criticality at Groves One, its first pilot isotope-production reactor, in early August, deploying it in just 229 days. Oklo's partnership with Meta Platforms, announced in January, aims to deliver 1.2 GW of power at a nuclear campus in Ohio, with initial phases expected online around 2030, and the company is working to convert a multi-gigawatt pipeline of non-binding letters of intent, including a 14 GW agreement with Switch, into firm Power Purchase Agreements. Oklo also signed an LOI to buy HALEU from Centrus Energy, one of the only companies authorized to produce and enrich HALEU in the United States, while carrying a $7.4 billion market cap that trades at 139 times its 2028 sales.

It was learned on the 16th that, in addition to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings and Japan Atomic Power Company, Kansai Electric Power and Tohoku Electric Power have indicated their intent to participate in the interim storage facility in Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, which temporarily stores spent nuclear fuel from nuclear power plants.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is hosting a two-day investment summit in Toronto starting Monday, aiming to attract global capital for more than 160 projects as Canada navigates a trade war with the United States. Confirmed attendees include BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, Blackstone President Jon Gray, Temasek CEO Dilhan Pillay and APG Groep CEO Annette Mosman, with the summit matching roughly 100 global investors with Canadian CEOs, companies and local officials. Carney has pledged to attract C$1 trillion, or $721 billion, in investment over the next five years by cutting red tape and developing mining, energy, technology and infrastructure projects, though a government source said major deals could take 12 to 18 months to materialize. The prospectus includes 96 data centers in development, an equity investment in Xanadu's photonic quantum computer targeted for commercialization by 2029-2030, the Crawford Nickel Project, and C$900 million in financing sought for a proposed high-speed transportation pod between Calgary and Edmonton. Canada's foreign direct investment flows have averaged around C$23 billion per quarter in 2024 and 2025, up from C$16.3 billion in 2023 and C$15 billion in 2022, though BMO Capital Markets chief economist Doug Porter cautioned it is difficult to lure greenfield investment in a mature economy like Canada's.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that a new consensus on economic reform and future direction has taken hold across the country, ahead of the first-ever Canada Investment Summit, to be held in Toronto on September 14-15. The event aims to draw a total of 1 trillion Canadian dollars, or 720 billion US dollars, in investment over the next five years. The summit will present Canada's Deal Book, which compiles major projects in the energy, strategic minerals, advanced technology, and large-scale infrastructure sectors, in order to connect global capital with Canada's major projects, strengthen domestic supply chains, raise productivity, and reduce economic dependence on the United States. Carney told leading business figures that Canada is taking control of its own economic future, and will build more, trade more with one another, and trade more with the world.