Barrick Gold (GOLD) remains “fully engaged and committed to reaching a mutually beneficial resolution” with the government of Mali to end a dispute over its assets in the country, Reuters reported, citing a memo from Sebastiaan Bock, the miner’s chief operating officer for Africa and the Middle East.
The comments relate to a dispute between Barrick and Mali dating back to 2023 over the implementation of the country’s new mining code, which gives the state a larger share of Barrick’s Loulo-Gounkoto gold mining complex.
Barrick Suspends Operations
Barrick in January suspended operations at the gold mine while it worked towards a resolution of the dispute with Mali’s government, which has been run by a military junta since 2020. The government had been blocking Barrick exporting gold from the site since November and later seized gold worth about $245 million. It also detained four Barrick employees.
However Reuters reported on February 19th that Barrick and Mali had reached an agreement to end the dispute, but the latest report indicates that finalizing the deal is taking some time. The news agency said Barrick would pay about $440 million to release the detained employees and the seized gold, and to resume operations at the mine.
Barrick lowered its gold output forecast this year to between 3.2 million ounces and 3.5 million ounces, due to the suspension of activities at the Mali mine.
Soaring gold prices has made assets such as the Mali mine prized assets despite the political risks. Goldman Sachs recently raised its price forecast for gold to $3,100/oz, with a potential rally to $3,300 if policy uncertainty remains high. With gold prices hitting record highs, Daniel Major from UBS last week upgraded Barrick Gold to a Buy, with a price target of $22.00.
Is GOLD a Good Stock to Buy?
On Wall Street, GOLD stock has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on ten Buys and three Holds. The average GOLD price target of $22.67 implies about 22% upside potential from current levels with the stock up 20% so far in 2025.
