Wednesday, 12th May 2004 (2658 views)

North American gold producers are calling for an increase in the amount of mergers.

The biggest producers are claiming that within the industry there is going to be more industry consolidation and new unions that will bring benefits to shareholders.

At present the gold industry is particularly fragmented and bosses want mergers to occur to boost gold reserves, cut costs and improve stock liquidity for shareholders.

Chief executive of Placer Dome Inc, North America's third top gold producer told Reuters: "I think it will be healthier if we saw fewer players and more consolidation."

"We continue to believe that this is an industry over the longer term that can benefit shareholders by continued consolidation, and we think that that will probably happen," added Wayne Murdy, chief executive of Newmont Mining Corp.

Already one gold merger has occurred this year in North America with Wheaton River Minerals' and Iamgold Corp, which is to be voted on in June.

 

« Back to the stories

 

The news feeds on this site are independently provided by Adfero Limited © and do not represent the views or opinions of the World Gold Council.