Ann: Production Update December Quarter, page-41

Barrick just merged with RandGold who has three operations in Mali and others in far shittier (is that how you spell it?) African locals than Mali. Barrick is the real big end of town in the world gold production equation and has chased Africa where the largest concentration of its new African acquisitions are located in Mali.

According to its own announcement, by merging it has created an industry leading investment vehicle "with the greatest concentration of Tier One Gold Assets1 in the industry, led by a proven management team of owners. Superior operating metrics, including the highest Adjusted EBITDA margin2 and the lowest total cash cost3 position among Senior Gold Peers4, will support sustainable investment in growth and shareholder returns."

You can read what the definition of a Tier 1 asset is here.

"Barrick and Randgold Combine to Create Industry-Leading Gold Investment Vehicle"

https://www.barrick.com/news/news-d...-Leading-Gold-Investment-Vehicle/default.aspx

The institutions will all follow Barrick'a lead and RSG is the new RandGold in the making. The world is global and FCF is king no mater where it is. The industry has just proven this with this merger. Investors are diversifying away from stable jurisdictions to chase better returns. Pretty average attempt at a downramp though IMO.Esh