JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The president and CEO of Barrick, Dr Mark Bristow, is stepping down after elevating the New York- and Toronto-listed gold and copper mining company to great heights in fewer than seven years.

After his high-flying Randgold Resources merged with the then low-flyng Barrick in 2019, South African-born Bristow led the hugely successful integration of the two companies, and during his tenure made very fruitful investments in Barrick’s world-class assets to boost profitable gold and copper growth.

Since the merger with Randgold, Barrick has returned $6.7-billion to shareholders and reduced net debt by $4-billion.

Under Bristow, Barrick has streaked ahead as a leading global mining, exploration and development company, with very advantageous discovery and development outcomes.

The most recent excellent set of second-quarter results reported outstanding operating performance, strong cash flows, an uplifted quarterly dividend and sturdy share price performance.

Six of the world’s Tier 1 gold mines and flourishing copper prospects have been bolting forward under Bristow across 18 countries and five continents.

Real, long-term value for all stakeholders has been created through responsible mining, strong partnerships and a disciplined approach to growth.

In Africa, Kibali in the north-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has stunned the world as one of the world’s greenest and most automated gold mines while continuing to contribute to the Congolese economy with in-country investment now surpassing $6.3-billion, which included $3.1-billion in payments to local contractors and partners.

The mine remains the single biggest economic contributor to the north-eastern DRC, spanning the Haut-Uele and Ituri provinces.

On the environmental protection front, solar power and battery energy storage have boosted DRC’s clean hydropower.

When Bristow began building Kibali 15 years ago, the region was one of the DRC’s most underdeveloped but the value created and the infrastructure built there have since transformed the region into a new economic frontier and a flourishing commercial hub.

Moreover, work with the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation and African Parks has resulted in the DRC’s Garamba National Park becoming synonymous with white rhino, the most social of all rhino species.

Bristow also highlighted how Africa’s Tanzania delivered “another on-track quarter with North Mara continuing its steady performance”.

At Tanzania’s Bulyanhulu, expansion is continuing with a spotlight on a second access and production area to support future growth. With associated royalty reduction benefit, Barrick is adapting to the new legislation that is being implemented in Tanzania, which requires 20% of gold production to be reserved for in-country trading.

In Zambia, copper progress at the Lumwana Super Pit Expansion is exciting Barrick amid the operation continuing on a steady upward trajectory, with year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter increases in production and a positive reduction across all key metrics.

The Lumwana Super Pit Expansion is not only well on track but has so far this year funded itself through operating cash flows, which will continue for the rest of the year at current spot prices.

Once complete, the expanded Lumwana is expected to deliver 240 000 t/y of copper, supported by a 52-million-ton-a-year processing plant and a mine life of more than 30 years.

Last year, Lumwana’s second quarter copper production was 25 000 t compared with this year’s second-quarter production of a far higher 44 000 t.

With this production surge has come a commensurate drop in the unit cost per pound of copper and all-in sustaining costs.

Lumwana second-quarter production was up 63%, cash costs down 29%, and the second-quarter run rate is persisting.

And the list of Bristow’s discovery and development success stories could go on and on…

Effective immediately, following the departure of Bristow, is the appointment of Mark Hill as Barrick’s COO and interim president and CEO. Hill, who joined Barrick in 2006, has been responsible for Barrick’s Latin America and Asia Pacific regions and Barrick has embarked on a process to arrive at a permanent appointment.