“You can take, maybe, Munk out of Barrick, (but) you can’t take Barrick out of Munk,” Peter Munk told Barrick shareholders at the company’s AGM Wednesday.
RENO (MINEWEB) – Anyone who thinks Peter Munk’s influence will no longer play a major role at Barrick Gold as he retired as co-chairman of the board Wednesday was in for a rude awakening as Munk told shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting that he intends to remain “very involved in Barrick.”
Munk’s son Anthony Munk was re-elected to the Barrick Board of Directors with 94.1% of the shareholder vote. Peter Munk will retain an office at Barrick corporate headquarters in Toronto.
As he departed from the Barrick board, Munk predicted Wednesday his greatest investment for Barrick over the past 32 years will be new Chairman of the Board John Thornton.
During Munk’s tenure as CEO, chairman, and co-chairman over the past 32 years, Munk said Barrick twice earned more money than any mining company in Canadian history, paid $8 billion in taxes, and created 25,000 jobs in 20 countries. However, along with Munk’s overall success as a CEO and chairman of Barrick, have come some staggering losses.
As Barrick CEO Jamie Sokalsky told analysts during a conference call Wednesday, “I think it’s fair to say that Barrick is a considerably different company today than it was a year ago following the comprehensive actions we took in 2013. It is leaner and stronger and in a much more flexible position.
Copper production dropped 15% in the first quarter. Earnings declined 90% “primarily due to the impact of lower metals prices and gold sales volumes,” he said.
During the first quarter, Barrick’s five core mines produced nearly one million gold ounces, or 60% of total production, at average all-in sustaining cost of just $672 per ounce, which is more than $600 below the average spot gold price, Sokalsky observed.
An extended and heavier-than-normal wet season in Zambia caused part of a main conveyor to collapse at Lumwana. Production is anticipated to resume in the third quarter. Copper output was also lower at Zalvídar.
Barrick has now revised its 2014 copper guidance from the previous range of 470 million to 500 million pounds to the new range of 410 million to 440 million pounds. Cost guidance remains unchanged at $1.90 to $2.10 per pound.
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