By John Tilak and Clara Denina
Reuters
Friday, September 28, 2018
Barrick Gold Corp. will seek Chinese investments in some of its African
mines to offset higher risk stemming from its planned $6.5 billion all-stock
acquisition of Africa-focused miner Randgold Resources, people familiar with
Barrick's thinking said.
Toronto-based Barrick will also lean on Randgold Chief Executive Officer
Mark Bristow's expertise in dealing with governments in challenging
jurisdictions to navigate the Africa continent risk, the people said,
addressing a concern of some Barrick shareholders.
The sources asked for anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly
discuss the matter involving the world's biggest gold miner.
Barrick's African expansion is a departure from its recent strategy of
focusing on relatively safe regions like the United States. Africa will
represent about 30 percent of Barrick's net asset value after the deal
closes, up from some 15 percent, Desjardins Securities estimates.
Chinese involvement in Africa will likely include minority stakes or joint
ventures in mines, the people familiar with Barrick's thinking told Reuters.
China's Zijin Mining Group and Shandong Gold said this week the deal
provides additional opportunities to expand their partnerships with Barrick
in Africa. ...
Barrick's executive chairman, John Thornton, a former Goldman Sachs
banker, has been building relationships with Chinese miners as part of a plan
to reduce exposure to risky jurisdictions. That work has intensified in
recent years, notably with Shandong's near billion-dollar investment in Barrick's
Argentine mine in 2017. ...
"It's been a goal of ours to build a distinctive and preferred
relationship with China," Thornton said on a conference call Monday. ...
... For the remainder of the report:
https://www.reuters.com/article/randgold-rsrc...ld/update-1-...
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