November 14, 2011

The Financial Post reports in its Saturday edition that Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold miner, may buy smaller assets near existing mines as part of its strategy to boost output.

A Bloomberg dispatch to the Post says Barrick will look at such opportunities while also focusing on larger, "substantive" projects, chief executive officer Aaron Regent said. "It's almost like a brownfield expansion, if there is a small mine that we discover or potentially acquire, because you bolt it on to existing infrastructure," he said.

Mr. Regent says Barrick wants a "balanced approach" to increasing production that includes acquisitions, project development and finding deposits through exploration. World gold supply will remain constrained even amid rising prices because few big new deposits have been discovered. --------.