Barrick Gold Plans To Pare Stake In African Barrick Gold

(RTTNews) - Canadian gold producer Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX, ABX.TO) announced Monday that it intends to pare its stake that it held indirectly in African Barrick Gold plc (ABG.L) as it continues efforts to divest non-core operations and cut costs in order to pay down debt. African Barrick is the largest gold miner by production in Tanzania.

Toronto, Canada-based Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold producer, said it will shed about 13.5 percent stake in African Barrick through a placement of its ordinary shares to institutional investors.

The company said it will will sell about 41 million of African Barrick ordinary shares, representing about 10.0 percent of the issued ordinary share capital and about 13.5 percent of Barrick's holding in African Barrick.

Following the completion of the sale, Barrick Gold would have pared its stake in African Barrick to about 61 percent from its current 74 percent. It reportedly anticipates proceeds of about $210 million from the offering.

The company noted that the placement of ordinary shares is being conducted through an accelerated bookbuilding process which will be launched immediately.

Barrick added that it has undertaken not to dispose of any further ordinary shares of African Barrick without the consent of the Joint Bookrunners for a period of 120 days.

Barrick Gold had spun-off its assets in Tanzania into a separate company in early 2010 to create African Barrick Gold, while retaining a majority stake in it. African Barrick Gold was listed on the London Stock Exchange in mid-March 2010, with an IPO valuation at $3.6 billion.

ABX closed Monday's regular trading session at $19.75, down $0.16 or 0.80% on a volume of 7.74 million shares.