Cameco sees 18 mln lbs Cigar Lake output

Gerald Grandey, CEO of Cameco Corporation, speaks at the Reuters Global Mining and Steel Summit in New York, March 10, 2010.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cameco Corp (CCO.TO) expects its Cigar Lake uranium mine to produce a total of 18 million lbs a year at full production, the uranium miner's chief executive said on Wednesday.

Cigar Lake, the world's largest unmined uranium deposit, flooded while under construction in 2006 and again in 2008, prompting Cameco to embark on a costly overhaul of the operation. The company recently said it had completely pumped out the mine in Saskatchewan, Canada, and planned to have it in production in 2013.

Speaking at the Reuters Global Mining and Steel summit, Cameco CEO Jerry Grandey said the mine's expected annual output following the production start will be the same as projected prior to the flood.

Cameco owns 50 percent of the project, while French nuclear giant Areva CEPFi.PA owns 37 percent. Idemitsu Canada Resources owns the rest.

(Reporting by Cameron French)