UraMin

UraMin is a Canadian company involved in uranium mining exploration, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange since December 2006, and acquired by the French multinational Areva (now Orano) on June 15, 2007, for 1.8 billion euros, to secure its uranium supply. In 2006, the price of nuclear fuel rose sharply. Over the winter, Uramin buys uranium deposits in Africa, but in 2008 these proved to be inoperable. This contributed to Areva's difficulties, as it found itself short of fuel for its customers, especially as the price of uranium finally fell in 2011, causing Uramin to lose all its value. Areva's 2007 takeover bid for Uramin marked the beginning of the "UraMin affair". The press revealed this politico-financial scandal involving French, Canadian, and African entrepreneurs and politicians in the early 2010s. The intelligence services, the French National Assembly, the Cour des Comptes, and the French justice system investigated various aspects of the case. Gradually, revelations of espionage, corruption, fraud, and conflicts of interest accumulated in the press. Including losses, Uramin cost Areva over 3 billion euros. Areva CEO Anne Lauvergeon was dismissed in 2011.