Regent takes Barrick's reins, will focus on exploration and acquisitions
Fri Jan 16, 1:38 PM
Kristine Owram, The Canadian Press
ca.news.finance.yahoo.com
By Kristine Owram, The Canadian Press
TORONTO - Amid high praise from Barrick Gold Corp.'s (TSX: ABX.TO) founder and chairman, Aaron Regent took the reins as chief executive of the world's largest gold producer Friday and assured shareholders he doesn't plan to rock the boat.
"I'm very optimistic about our ability to continue to create value for shareholders and, as we continue to fine-tune our strategy and plans, one of the things I do want to say is that Barrick has had a successful track record, it's got a great formula here," Regent said in a conference call with shareholders and analysts.
"I don't want people to anticipate any real changes in the strategy."
Regent, at 43, is one of the younger chief executives in the industry, but his resume boasts considerable experience in the mining sector.
He was previously president of Falconbridge, which merged with Noranda Inc. in 2005. As president, Regent oversaw the sale of the combined company to Swiss-based Xstrata PLC in 2006 in a $27-billion transaction that was then the largest deal in the mining industry's history.
After the sale of Falconbridge, Regent joined Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (TSX: BAM-A.TO) as a senior managing partner and co-CEO of the Toronto investment company's infrastructure group.
Brookfield, formerly known as Brascan, is a global asset manager with more than $90 billion under management.
Before that, Regent was the chief financial officer of Noranda and also held several executive positions with various Brascan companies.
Barrick chairman and founder Peter Munk said everyone in the industry was impressed by the Falconbridge sale and praised Regent's business sense.
"I watched that (sale) from the sidelines and I think there was nobody in the mining industry who would not have had the greatest admiration for Aaron's sense of strategic evaluation," Munk said.
"I think truly for a man who is 40-odd-years-old and has Aaron's kind of experience, the future is unlimited."
Salman Partners analyst Haytham Hodaly said Regent's "significant" experience running big-cap mining companies makes him a good fit for Barrick.
"He does have experience running companies, he does have experience in dealing with a lot of acquisitions and mergers, so I do think he brings some big-picture things to the company," Hodaly said.
"Time will tell if he's going to be a good replacement, but he definitely has the background to drive the company to the next level."
Regent said he viewed Barrick as a "role model for the industry" while he was at Noranda and Falconbridge and is "thrilled and honoured" to be at the head of the world's largest gold producer.
"Barrick has an enviable track record of success, of acquiring reserves, of growing, of delivering on projects and it was a real benchmark to us in the industry," he said.
Regent said his first priorities as chief executive are to spend time with the management team and travel extensively to develop an in-depth understanding of the company and its projects.
The new CEO said his focus will be a "three-pronged attack" focusing on exploration, project development and acquisitions.
But he said shareholders shouldn't expect to see a big shakeup in the way things are done at Barrick.
"Barrick is a company that has a great track record, so my perspective is, if it isn't broke, why tinker with something that's working well?" Regent said.
"We want to be the highest quality gold company through performance, through delivering returns for shareholders, through the quality of the asset base, and one with a great future."
Regent said he has no immediate plans to diversify Barrick's focus away from gold, and added that he's bullish on gold prices in 2009.
"With respect to the gold price, I think there are a number of bullish factors you could point to, particularly what's happening in the U.S. right now and the commitments the current administration has made," Regent said.
"In normal circumstances that should put pressure on the U.S. dollar and that's normally good for gold."
Regent takes over Barrick from Munk, who has been acting CEO since March, when former CEO Greg Wilkins went on a medical leave. Wilkins later resigned in July.
Barrick has operations in North and South America, Africa and Australia and about 20,000 employees.
In its latest quarter, Barrick reported net profits of US$254 million, down from US$345 million a year earlier.
The company, which reports in U.S. currency, said its profit drop reflected $97 million in impairment charges on Barrick's interest in Highland Gold and other portfolio investments.
In Friday trading on the TSX, Barrick shares lost 19 cents to $41.87. |
