Barrick Gold set for name change to reflect copper growth

Barrick Gold Corp. [ABX-TSX, GOLD-NYSE] said Monday it plans to change its name to Barrick Mining Corp. The move is subject to approval at the company’s annual and special meeting of shareholders on May 6, 2025. In connection with the name change, the company also plans to change its ticker symbol for the Barrick common shares listed on the New York Stock Exchange from ‘GOLD’ to “B,” a move that is scheduled to become effective on May 9, 2025. However, Barrick common shares will continue to trade under the symbol ‘ABX’ on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

“Barrick’s vision is to be the world’s most valued gold and copper exploration, development and mining company,” said Barrick President and CEO Mark Bristow. “Along with our portfolio of six tier one gold mines, we are building a substantial copper business which will be a meaningful contributor to growing our production volumes in the coming years and beyond,” Bristow said.

“Barrick Mining Corp and our new stock symbol, ‘B’, better reflect Barrick’s current business and our mission to achieve sustainable and profitable gold and copper growth.  Gold remains core to our foundation and we will continue to explore for and develop new mines, including the expansion of Pueblo Viejo (Dominican Republic), the exciting Fourmile gold project in Nevada and exemplified by the Reko Diq project (Pakistan) with its world class mix of both copper and gold,’’ Bristow said.

Barrick shares were virtually unchanged Monday, easing 0.15% or $0.04 to $26.37. The shares trade in a 52-week range of $29.50 and $21.73.

Barrick has previously said it expects to produce less gold in 2025 as it navigates a months-long dispute with Mali’s military regime over one of its biggest mining complexes. The company expects to produce between 3.15 million and 3.5 million ounces of gold this year while production at the Loulo-Gounkoto operations in Mali is suspended.

That’s a drop from 3.9 million ounces produced in 2024 at an all-in-sustaining cost of US$1,484 an ounce.

Barrick has gold and copper mining operations and projects in 13 countries in North and South America, Africa, Papua New Guinea and Saudi Arabia.

The portfolio includes half of the world’s top 10 tier one gold assets (defined as having a mine life of over 10 years, at least 500,000 ounces of annual production and in the bottom half of global total cash costs).

They include Cortez and Goldstrike in Nevada, Kibali in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Loulo-Gounkoto in Mali, and Pueblo Viejo in the Dominican Republic.

Loulo-Gounkoto was expected to account for about 14% of the company’s expected production in 2024.

Barrick in December, 2024, filed a request for arbitration to the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes over the situation in Mali.