Paladin in the frame The cashed-up Canadian uranium miner Cameco has made it clear it is looking for acquisitions in the $C1 billion to $C2 billion range following a recent $US460 million equity raising.
In the local market, Paladin Energy would fit the bill - it has a market value of about $2 billion. The only other uranium miner in production, the Rio-controlled Energy Resources of Australia, is worth $3.8 billion, and the parent company would appear to be a reluctant seller, although it may become more willing if its Chinalco deal was cancelled.
The Canadian-listed Uranium One is the only other uranium miner in the Western world that would fit Cameco's criteria.
JP Morgan and Macquarie Equities both named Paladin a likely target for Cameco yesterday. Speculation of a Cameco bid for Paladin is not new, but asset values are now a lot cheaper, and the Canadian miner is more willing to pounce.
I found this article in the Sydney Morning Herald 18/3/09. Its interesting that the writer believes there are only three uranium resources in the western world that would suit Cameco, and Extract is not one of them as they are not yet producers. They also only have a 2 billion market value on Paladin which seems a little low compared with what we want for our baby. Any thoughts?
EXT Price at posting:
$3.15 Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
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