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NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release:April 26, 1999

COGEMA McCLEAN LAKE ONE STEP
CLOSER TO FULL OPERATION

On Friday April 23, 1999, COGEMA Resources Inc. of Saskatoon received Initial Consideration from the Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB) for an amendment to the McClean Lake operating licence. This amendment, when given final approval, would allow the operation of the JEB Mill and Tailings Management Facility (TMF). A final approval is expected at the June 17 AECB board meeting. The JEB mill would be in a position to produce yellowcake soon after. COGEMA is the operator and majority owner of the McClean Lake uranium project in northern Saskatchewan.

The JEB mill has been constructed and is in the process of commissioning and testing. Construction and final pre-operational testing of the TMF, into which residues from the milling process are placed, will be completed in June.

"We are very pleased to enter the final licensing phase for the mill and tailings management facility," said COGEMA Senior Vice President Tim Gitzel. "About 300 employees plus contractor staff are in place and ready to start production," Gitzel added. "Our Quality Assurance / Quality Control management system combined with the innovative environmental and safety designs used at McClean will provide a project that will be state-of-the-art."

The McClean uranium deposit was first discovered in 1979. The mill, constructed in 1997, will process the ore from the mined JEB pit, the nearby Sue pits and the McClean underground mine planned for future development. The mill is planned, subject to future approvals, to handle ore from the Midwest and the Cigar Lake mines. COGEMA's partners in the McClean Lake Project are Denison Mines Limited (22.5%) and OURD (Canada) Co. Ltd. (7.5%).

Headquartered in Saskatoon, COGEMA Resources Inc. operates mining and milling facilities at Cluff Lake in northern Saskatchewan. COGEMA Resources is also operator and majority owner of the McClean Lake and Midwest uranium projects, and part owner of the Cigar Lake and McArthur River uranium mines. Of the company's employees at the mine sites, more than 50% are from northern communities.

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For further information please contact:

Tim Gitzel
Senior Vice President & Corporate Counsel
COGEMA Resources Inc.
Phone: (306) 343-4501

McCLEAN LAKE PROJECT

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

• The JEB ore body has been mined out and the ore stockpiled. The JEB pit is being developed as a tailings management facility.

• The Sue open pit has been mined to the ore zone.

• The McClean (JEB) Mill is in the process of final commissioning; its water treatment plant has been operating for more than 2 years. In the future, the mill will be expanded to handle ore from the Cigar Lake and Midwest deposits.

• Workers are flown in from their home communities. COGEMA staff are on a 7 day in - 7 day out schedule.

• McClean's workforce (52% northerners) at present comprises about 267 COGEMA employees, 67 long-term contractors and 67 short-term contractors.

• The expected life of the combined McClean/Cigar project is about 40 years.

• Designed with advanced features not found anywhere else in the world, the JEB Tailings Management Facility (TMF) is being developed to take tailings from the McClean, Cigar Lake and Midwest Projects. During decommissioning, the TMF will be completely back filled with waste rock, capped with till material and re-vegetated. Following decommissioning, monitoring will continue to confirm satisfactory performance for long term isolation and containment of the tailings.

• The McClean site is located about 700 km north of Saskatoon.