Barrick Mining Corp is exploring an initial public offering of its prized North American gold assets that may be worth over $60 billion as the company grapples with mining setbacks and a management shakeup. Shares hit a 13-year high, according to Bloomberg.
The company’s board authorized management to explore the sale of a minority stake in a unit that would be anchored by Barrick’s joint-venture interests in Nevada and a large mine in the Dominican Republic, it said in a statement Monday. Management will explore the move through early 2026 and update the market on progress in February.
Barrick’s US-listed stock jumped as much as 4.2 per cent in New York to touch $43.08, the highest since September 2012, valuing the company at more than $70 billion.The announcement confirms Bloomberg reporting in October and comes after activist investor Elliott Investment Management LP took a large stake in the Toronto-based gold producer.
The proposal would see Barrick hive off its top-tier North American operations from the rest of its sprawling portfolio in more challenging jurisdictions. Following the IPO, Barrick would retain a controlling interest in the new company, which would also contain its wholly owned Fourmile gold discovery in Nevada. Any decision would still require board approval.
Barrick’s North American assets may be worth nearly $62 billion if investors assign the spinoff a premium similar to that of North American rival Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Grant Sporre said in a Monday note. Still, Barrick will need to convince investors that the new company can close the operating performance gap to its competitor, “which may be challenging.”
The development is the latest under interim Chief Executive Officer Mark Hill, who was appointed following Mark Bristow’s sudden departure in September. Hill has already brought changes: He has replaced managers and adjusted the regional operating model in a bid to improve performance that left the gold producer trailing peers at a time of surging bullion prices.
The IPO would separate the high-quality Nevada assets from riskier mines elsewhere in the world. In October, Bloomberg reported that Barrick’s joint-venture partner, Newmont Corp., had studied a deal to gain control of the mines it shares in Nevada.
“This plan essentially packages up parts of Barrick the market is currently most excited about into a vehicle that is likely to become an acquisition target for Newmont Corp.,” National Bank Financial analyst Shane Nagle said in a Monday note to clients.
While there was no reason given for Bristow’s departure, his term as CEO was marked by losing control of a key mine in Mali that was seized by the military junta. Barrick’s operations in Pakistan and Papua New Guinea have also weighed on the company’s stock in recent years as it wrestled with operational setbacks in each country.
Its North American assets, meanwhile, have benefited from recent expansions and safer jurisdictions -- although costs have risen and there have been reports of fatal accidents.Barrick shares have returned 15 per cent over the past five years on an annualized basis, which is about half its peer group average, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
