Barrick Gold's Pueblo Viejo gold mine in the Dominican Republic. Florida-based Elliott Management has taken a significant stake in the miner.Ricardo Rojas/Reuters
Barrick Mining Corp. ABX-T unveiled a slew of management changes late Tuesday aimed at improving its subpar performance and bulking up its operations in North America, not long after markets learned activist investor Elliott Investment Management L.P. has amassed a large stake in the struggling Canadian gold miner.
Florida-based Elliott has taken a roughly $1-billion stake in Barrick, the country’s second-largest miner, and is pressing its board to improve its share price with steps that include splitting Barrick into two companies, according to a source familiar with the campaign.
The Globe and Mail is not naming the source because they are not permitted to speak publicly on the matter.
Under the plan being pushed by Elliott, one of the post-split companies would own Barrick’s lower-risk mines in the Americas and the other would hold higher-risk properties in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
The Financial Times first reported on Elliott’s campaign early Tuesday. Last week, Reuters also reported Barrick’s board is considering splitting up the company.
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Elliott is now one of the 10 largest shareholders in Barrick, according to the source.
Analysts applauded the concept of restructuring Barrick after years of the miner’s stock price underperforming that of peers.
“It has long been our view that management focus could be better utilized focusing on assets that provide the most bang for the buck, both in terms of ounces of production, and favourable jurisdictions that provide the best multiples,” said analyst Anita Soni at CIBC Capital Markets in a report.
After the Elliott investment was publicized on Tuesday, Barrick interim chief executive officer Mark Hill sent a memo to staff announcing a restructuring of the company’s core operating divisions. Under the new plan, the giant Pueblo Viejo mine in the Dominican Republic will be moved into Barrick’s North American unit, which already houses its Nevada operations. Pueblo Viejo was previously part of Barrick’s Latin America and Asia Pacific unit.
The move to strengthen Barrick’s North American unit is consistent with the company’s stated new strategy to focus on operations with a safer risk profile.
Earlier this month, Mr. Hill said the miner is shifting its focus to its North America operations.
Barrick to double down on North America, vows to improve safety record
As part of the restructuring, several long-serving Barrick executives have left the company, including Kevin Thomson, senior executive VP, strategic matters, who had been with Barrick since 2014.
Also departing are Christine Keener, chief operating officer, North America, and Kevin Annett, chief financial officer, North America. Ms. Keener will be replaced by Tim Cribb and Mr. Annett will be replaced by Wessel Hamman.
George Joannou, who has been with the company since 2002, is assuming the role of chief development officer.
Mr. Hill in his memo said that the management changes were necessary to address Barrick’s lacklustre operational performance and its poor safety record.
“Our safety performance has been deeply concerning, and we need to do better,” he said.
Three Barrick employees died in industrial accidents this year and 19 people have died on the job at the miner over the past five years. The company’s record is far worse than competitors such as Newmont Corp. and Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.
In September, Barrick chief executive officer Mark Bristow departed suddenly after six years at the helm. During his tenure, the company had disputes with governments over mines in several countries, including Mali and Tanzania.
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During Mr. Bristow’s time as CEO, Barrick’s share price underperformed domestic peers such as Agnico Eagle, now the country’s largest gold miner, and Kinross Gold Corp. Over the past five years, Agnico and Kinross expanded their reserves through a series of acquisitions, while Mr. Bristow avoided takeovers.
Elliott has US$76-billion in assets under management and was founded in 1977 by Paul Singer, who Fortune magazine described as one of the toughest fund managers in public markets.
In early 2022, Elliott led a successful shakeup in the management of Calgary-based Suncor Energy Inc., which had underperformed peers in the oil patch and posted a dismal safety record. After the fund manager stepped in, Suncor refreshed its board and replaced its CEO with former Imperial Oil Ltd. boss Rich Kruger.
Later that year, Elliott worked with Toronto-based Kinross on a well-received, US$300-million share buyback. Since that investment, Kinross has been one of the country’s top-performing large capitalization gold stocks.
In 2017, Elliott targeted Melbourne-based BHP Group Ltd., the world’s largest mining company. The fund manager pushed for the sale of its oil business and consolidation of listings on British and Australian exchanges. BHP subsequently exited the energy business and moved to a primary listing on the Australian Securities Exchange.
As part of the reorganization announced on Tuesday, Barrick’s Reko Diq project in Pakistan is being moved out of the Latin America and Asia Pacific unit, and will be run separately.