Barrick Gold and Randgold merger brings together Barrick name and Randgold executives.
On Monday, Barrick Gold announced that its takeover of Randgold Resources, worth US$6 billion, has been set in motion.
The merger will create an industry-leading gold company valued at US$18.3 billion with the greatest concentration of tier-one gold assets in the industry, and secure Barrick Gold’s status as the world’s biggest gold company.
John L. Thornton, Executive Chairman of Barrick, commented:
“The combination of Barrick and Randgold will create a new champion for value creation in the gold mining industry, bringing together the world’s largest collection of tier-one gold assets, with a proven management team that has consistently delivered among the best shareholder returns in the gold sector over the past decade. Our overriding measure of success will be the returns we generate and not the number of ounces we produce, balancing boldness and prudence to deliver consistent and growing returns to our fellow owners, a truly simple but radical and achievable concept. There are no premiums in the merger because we strongly believe in the opportunity to add significant value for our shareholders from the disciplined management of our combined asset base and a focus on truly profitable growth.”
The combined company will retain the Barrick name and Graham Shuttleworth, Randgold’s current CFO, will be continuing in the role of CFO The New Barrick Group.
Randgold’s CEO Mark Bristow will serve as CEO and President of the combined company and Catherine Raw, Barrick’s CFO, will become Chief Operating Officer, North America.
Mark Bristow also commented:
“Our industry has been criticised for its short-term focus, undisciplined growth and poor returns on invested capital. The merged company will be very different. Its goal will be to deliver sector leading returns, and in order to achieve this, we will need to take a very critical view of our asset base and how we run our business, and be prepared to make tough decisions. By employing a strategy similar to the one that proved very successful at Randgold, but on a larger scale, the New Barrick Group will leverage some of the world’s best mines and talent to create real value for all stakeholders.”