Barrick’s North American IPO Faces Roadblocks as Newmont Presses for Governance Safeguards

Barrick Mining is pursuing a partial spin-off of its North American gold assets to raise value, but the plan is being tested by pressure from partner Newmont. Newmont is signaling potential leverage from the joint-venture contract to complicate or even block the transaction. Officially, the target remains a partial IPO of the North American portfolio by the end of 2026, but the path forward hinges on how the Nevada Gold Mines governance dispute is resolved.

What’s at stake – the key points
- Newmont argues the Nevada Gold Mines operation under Barrick’s leadership has not performed up to expectations.
- The partner suggests it could use protective provisions within the joint-venture agreement to challenge or block Barrick’s planned asset IPO.
- The timetable remains unchanged on paper: a partial offering of the North American assets is targeted for Q4 2026.

Newmont nails the issue to the JV’s performance
Newmont is pushing Barrick to lift the performance of the Nevada Gold Mines venture. Reports indicate the miner publicly expressed concern about what it views as lagging results from the operation run by Barrick.

More pointedly, Newmont has signaled it could invoke contractual protections to complicate Barrick’s spin-off plans. The core questions revolve around how a spin-off or sale would be structured and how the value generated by Nevada Gold Mines would be allocated between the partners, which in turn affects timing and valuation for any potential IPO.

Analysts respond positively despite the dispute
Despite the tensions around the joint venture, several banks remained constructive after Barrick’s latest earnings release. The Q4 results, announced on February 5, showed revenue that topped expectations: $6.00 billion versus a consensus of $5.16 billion.

Key analyst updates include:
- Stifel: raised the price target from CAD 65 to CAD 95 while maintaining a Buy rating (as of February 10).
- Citi: increased the target from USD 38 to USD 48 and kept a Neutral stance (as of February 9).
- UBS: lowered the target from USD 59 to USD 55 while sustaining a Buy rating.

IPO plan: Q4 2026 — but with caveats
Barrick reiterated its plan to pursue a partial IPO of its North American assets by Q4 2026. The new entity would consolidate Barrick’s stakes in Nevada Gold Mines and Pueblo Viejo, alongside Barrick’s wholly owned Fourmile discovery in Nevada. Barrick called Fourmile one of the most significant gold discoveries of this century and suggested the prospective company could sit among the leading producers in the sector.

That’s where Newmont’s contractual options could prove decisive. The objections could shape the structure of the spin-off, particularly governance arrangements and how the economic value is split between the partners.

To summarize the road ahead: Barrick’s stated objective remains a Q4 2026 partial IPO, but the feasibility and form of that transaction now depend on how the Newmont dispute around Nevada Gold Mines is resolved, both contractually and structurally.

@ boerse-global.de | CA0679011084 BARRICK’S