The US$6-billion merger of Barrick Gold and Randgold Resources is complete with trading starting on the new company’s shares in New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges.
Executive Chairman John Thornton and president-CEO Mark Bristow participated in the opening bell at the NYSE on Jan.2.
The new mining company will still operate under the Barrick banner but its trading symbol on the NYSE will change to GOLD, the ticker formerly held by Randgold on NASDAQ. On the TSX, the ticker remains ABX.
In a Jan.2 release, Barrick claimed the merger creates a “sector-leading” mining company which owns five of the industry’s Top 10 Tier One gold assets in Cortez and Goldstrike in Nevada, USA (100 per cent); Kibali in the Congo (45 per cent); Loulo-Gounkoto in Mali (80 per cent); and Pueblo Viejo in Dominican Republic (60 per cent).
Barrick’s only Northern Ontario asset is the Williams Mine in the Hemlo complex. Located on the north shore of Lake Superior, Hemlo has produced more than 21 million ounces of gold over more than 30 years. But media reports over the past year suggest Barrick is looking to sell the mine as it focuses on acquiring only Tier One gold properties around the world.
At the opening of markets, Barrick boasted it had a market capitalization in excess of $23.75 billion, with the largest reserves base among its senior gold peers. In a joint letter to shareholders, Thornton and Bristow said the company was “well placed to be the world’s most valued gold mining business.
“We will do so by optimizing our existing operations, pursuing new opportunities that meet strict investment criteria, and developing them with disciplined efficiency. In all that we do we will be guided by a long-term strategy and clear implementation plans designed to deliver sustainable returns to our owners, and real benefits to our partners, host countries, and communities.”
