Loading ...TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – The world’s largest gold producer by output Barrick Gold on Monday announced that it had closed a deal forming a strategic partnership with Zijin Mining Group. The Chinese firm initially acquired a 50% interest in Barrick Niugini (BNL) for $298-million in cash. Proceeds from the transaction would be used to repay debt. Barrick had been dealing with high debt levels in a lower gold-price environment, selling various noncore assets to reduce its $12.9-billion in debt, having pledged to raise at least $3-billion for this purpose this year. Canada’s Barrick was orchestrating a pull-back from operations in the southern hemisphere, having already sold four mines in Australia, as well as the Papua New Guinea (PNG) divestment. Last month, the company had also sold a 50% stake in the Zaldivar copper mine, in northern Chile, to Antofagasta for $1-billion.
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http://www.miningweekly.com/article/barrick-closes-298m-porgera-jv-deal-with-zijin-2015-08-31