Earnings Call Transcript - B Q2 2025

Operator, Operator

Welcome to Barrick's Results Presentation for the Second Quarter of 2025. As a reminder, this event is being recorded, and a replay will be available on Barrick's website later today. I will now turn the call over to Mark Bristow, President and CEO of Barrick. Please go ahead, sir.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

Thank you for joining us today. It's great to be back in London with fantastic weather. I'm here to discuss our second quarter results and the progress we're making in our business. This quarter was productive for Barrick, building on the momentum from the first quarter with improved production, consistent performance from our Tier 1 assets, and significant advancements in our growth projects. We’re navigating an uncertain global environment, which underscores the importance of a diversified portfolio, disciplined capital allocation, and effective operations in various settings. Our performance this quarter is impressive, with the portfolio delivering results, a strong balance sheet, and an even better outlook for the second half. We're creating real value as we execute our plans, and although the market hasn't fully acknowledged this yet, we believe it's a clear opportunity. I want to remind everyone that today's presentation will include forward-looking statements and financial metrics subject to various risks and assumptions. Please refer to the full cautionary notes in the appendix. Now, let’s look at the group highlights. We delivered in line with our plans, capitalizing on the high gold price. Production met our guidance, and we anticipate a stronger performance in the second half, matching our initial projections. Earnings per share more than doubled from last year, reaching $0.47, the highest since 2013. We ended the quarter with net cash, allowing us to buy back shares and reinforce our balance sheet. The Board approved a total dividend of $0.15 per share, including a $0.05 performance top-up. Operationally, we are pleased with our results across the portfolio. Nevada Gold Mines and Pueblo Viejo showed strong performance, while Lumwana is starting to reach its potential. The ramp-up at Goldrush is gaining speed, and Fourmile continues to grow, which we will discuss later. Overall, production improved, driven by contributions from Nevada Gold Mines, Pueblo Viejo, Kibali, and Lumwana, setting us up for a robust second half. We also saw year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter improvements in copper production volumes, along with a decrease in unit costs. Our focus on controlling all-in sustaining costs is paying off, as we’re beginning to see that discipline reflected in our results. Additionally, we sold our interest in the Donlin Gold project for $1 billion, aligning with our disciplined capital allocation strategy and enhancing our growth pipeline. Financially, the improved operating performance and a stronger gold price resulted in our best quarterly adjusted earnings per share in over a decade. We experienced growth in revenue, net earnings, and adjusted net earnings compared to the prior quarter and the same quarter last year. Attributable EBITDA growth highlighted stronger margins, and net cash from operating activities reached $1.33 billion, a 35% increase from the previous quarter when excluding interest and income taxes. Free cash flow improved, bolstered by the gold price and disciplined capital allocation. As we continue to implement our capital return framework, we've returned $753 million to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks in the first half of the year. This excludes the performance dividend to be paid in the third quarter. The indicators point towards an even stronger second half as we adhere to our plans. Health and safety remain a core priority, with significant improvements in both leading and lagging indicators. Year-to-date, we achieved a 50% reduction in Lost Time injuries and a 37% decrease in Total Injuries compared to the previous year, demonstrating enhanced frontline engagement and the effectiveness of our safety programs. Now, let's move on to our operations starting with North America. This quarter, Nevada Gold Mines led our group's performance through production increases and progress on growth projects. The complex is transitioning to predominantly underground operations, and we've shifted from using contractors to self-performing as our in-house capabilities improve. At Goldrush, the ramp-up is proceeding as planned, and we are optimistic about the potential at Fourmile, an extension of the Goldrush orebody. We observed increased gold production this quarter at Nevada Gold Mines, which reinforced our financial strength and contributed to lower all-in sustaining costs. With major planned maintenance behind us, we are well-positioned to achieve an even stronger second half. Regarding Fourmile, it is rapidly becoming one of the largest and highest-grade gold discoveries in the industry this century. The resource potential has expanded significantly, and we expect to double the current resource or more. We are also defining significant high-grade orebody extensions, making Fourmile a generational asset. With this resource located close to existing infrastructure, it presents a unique opportunity for growth without the complexities of establishing operations elsewhere. Moving on to Latin America and Asia Pacific, we achieved solid performance this quarter, particularly at Pueblo Viejo, where we have made progress on plant expansion thus improving throughput and gold production. Veladero and Zaldivar also continued to perform well. The resettlement action plan at Pueblo Viejo is progressing successfully, with families moving into new housing each week. This initiative is vital for fostering community development in emerging markets. In Reko Diq, we are advancing this world-class project with Fluor as our EPCM engineering partner, and we remain on track for project financing. The region has seen a remarkable turnaround since 2019, with significant exploration opportunities emerging. We have promising results in Argentina and Pakistan, and we continue to advance new targets in the Dominican Republic and Peru. In Africa and the Middle East, we focused on enhancing our value potential. Kibali delivered another strong quarter with higher production and improved unit costs, partly due to reduced sustaining capital. The solar power plant and battery energy storage system further position Kibali as a leading automated and environmentally friendly gold mine. Tanzania projects are on track, and we are excited about progress at the Lumwana super pit expansion, which is expected to produce 240,000 tonnes of copper per year. Our goal is to reduce all-in sustaining costs to under $3 per pound, confirming the feasibility of our mining model. Our operations across Africa continue to generate cash and replace reserves, with exploration efforts yielding promising results. This is a strong and resilient portfolio. Despite challenges, we are confident in our value proposition as Barrick remains an unparalleled investment opportunity in the gold and copper sector, with world-class assets, a clear growth strategy, and the financial strength to support that growth. Thank you for your attention. We are now happy to take your questions.

Daniel Edward Major, Analyst

Perfect. Daniel Major from UBS. Nice to see you in London, guys. Yes, a few questions from me. So the first one on Loulo-Gounkoto. I appreciate the best solution would be a restart, et cetera. But can you give us any timelines around the key milestones to look forward to in or look for in the arbitration process, what we should be looking for in the event that a resolution can be reached?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

I believe we are not at a point where we think a resolution is unreachable. I have always mentioned that engaging in dialogue creates opportunities. While there have been developments in Mali that complicate matters, the tribunal has been established with the Malian authorities appointing their member and an independent president. We have submitted our initial application for interim relief measures, which focuses on protecting the assets as we seek a solution. This process will continue to evolve. Additionally, we are actively engaged in various treaty programs between Canada and Mali, and we have legal representation in Mali with an experienced team, along with some of our executives still in the country. We also have third-party mediation underway. A significant amount of effort is being put into this situation, and we are maintaining communication. It would be unwise to attempt to negotiate in public, and we are aware of efforts to take this dispute into the public eye. We have created a section on our website to keep people informed about the facts, and we will keep updating it so that anyone interested can track the progress. From my experience, negotiating in public is not advisable.

Daniel Edward Major, Analyst

Okay. And then the next question on divestments. It looks like you're kind of moving forward with Hemlo, Tongon. Zaldivar had the water permit extended. So we've got visibility on the Life of Mine of this asset now. What's the fit in the portfolio? And then I guess the same question for Porgera, is that a core asset as it stands today?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

I believe we have enough to accomplish in the short term. Once we finish that, we can revisit other matters, Dan. I reminded someone today that back in 2019, when we completed the merger with Barrick and Randgold, Hemlo was for sale. We invested significantly in Hemlo to restore it as a viable operation. There's a strong demand for these types of mines. We believe it's essential to evaluate our portfolio against our disciplined approach to acquiring Tier 1 long-life assets that can weather all cycles in the commodity market, and it's a prudent practice. As you know, we are one of the few miners that have added 110 million ounces of gold equivalent to reserves in Barrick over the last six years. We are investing in our future, having brought in significant new reserves at Reko Diq and converted large reserves in PV and Lumwana. It makes sense to rationalize the portfolio from time to time. We began this process immediately after our merger in 2019. Now that several years have passed, we have growth opportunities ahead of us, and it’s the right time to streamline the portfolio, especially with buyers actively in the market.

Daniel Edward Major, Analyst

Okay. And then just 1 more, if I could, on Fourmile, looks like some kind of really exciting results going forward. Does this change the way that you're thinking about the scope of the operation going forward or the timeline given the growing scale, yes, how do you see that?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

There is still much to be determined regarding Fourmile. We have shortened our timeline and aim to establish a scoping position for the project by the end of this year. After that, we will evaluate the next steps, whether that involves moving to prefeasibility or feasibility stages, and how exactly we will proceed. When considering Fourmile in relation to Nevada Gold Mines, placing Fourmile at the center of that operation would mean integrating it into the roaster feeds, which is currently a limiting factor, while offering grades three to four times higher. This would enhance the overall operational profile, increase lifespan, and reduce costs, making it a highly valuable asset in that portfolio. We have put significant effort into strengthening our partnership with Newmont in Nevada Gold Mines and will continue to do so. Additionally, we've demonstrated our capability to secure permits for mines in the U.S., having recently permitted Goldrush and Robertson, prior to the Trump administration. The current administration has made the permitting process more efficient, ensuring it is not obstructed by litigation and focused on maintaining proper regulations that align with our global outlook. Furthermore, we are actively exploring brownfield and greenfield extensions within the Nevada portfolio, the joint venture portfolio of Nevada Gold Mines, as well as in other areas of Nevada under Barrick. We see ongoing opportunities and have been investing in building our knowledge and capabilities, particularly for permitting drill platforms, which we are now quite adept at. Therefore, throughout the rest of this year, we anticipate presenting more opportunities to expand our portfolio within the United States.

Operator, Operator

Investment Management.

Unidentified Analyst, Analyst

I haven't followed the company for a while, so I have two questions out of ignorance. First on Loulo, what is the situation with the assets on the balance sheet that have been partially or completely impaired?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

So let me pass it on to Graham. It's an accounting procedure given the current situation, and he's the best man to explain that.

Graham Patrick Shuttleworth, CFO

So yes, so as Mark said, from an accounting point of view, once the government appointed the administrator to take control of Loulo-Gounkoto, that meant that we no longer had control of that asset. And therefore, from an accounting point of view, when you no longer control assets, you can't consolidate it. And so we did 2 things. We deconsolidated the assets and effectively wrote off the assets and liabilities on the balance sheet. And then we subsequently did a valuation of our investment because we still own 80% of that asset, we can still expect to get the benefits from our investment in that asset. And so we did a valuation of that asset using a number of different metrics, including risk-adjusted cash flows that we expect to get from the asset over a period of time. And the difference between those 2 was approximately $1 billion before tax, about $600 million after tax, which is what was put through the P&L. I would just point out at this junction that we also sold the Donlin asset during the quarter. We recognized a gain on that, which was around $750 million, after tax about $600 million. So in effect, we had a loss and a gain, which more or less offset each other, which is why when you look at the adjusted earnings and the net earnings, they're approximately the same.

Unidentified Analyst, Analyst

Okay. Thank you so much, much clearer now. And the second question is just to have a bit more color on the project that you have in Saudi Arabia, Jabal Sayid, if I pronounce it correctly, both in terms of ownership structure and in terms of development expectations, et cetera, et cetera.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

It's a small high-grade underground copper mine with a projected life of 10 years. We've successfully extended its life and boosted production. It's a low-cost producer that has repaid all its loans and debt, significantly contributing to our partnership, which is jointly owned 50-50 by Ma'aden and Barrick. We are the only foreign operators, as we manage the mine while being equal partners with Ma'aden. This demonstrates that operations in Saudi Arabia are viable. Furthermore, we have broadened our partnership with Ma'aden in exploration, both around Jabal Sayid and in seeking opportunities beyond that area, which we consider a key partnership. Throughout my career, I've established numerous partnerships in complex regions, and as you know, Saudi's state mining company has substantial expertise and is primarily focused on bulk mining, which is its main strength. However, it also holds a range of exploration rights across the Arabian Shield, a region we view as highly prospective for both gold and copper. Hence, we are collaborating with Ma'aden to deepen our partnership throughout that area.

Operator, Operator

We've built a lot of partnerships in my career in complex jurisdictions. As you know, Saudi is the state mining company effectively, and it has great depth, focusing primarily on bulk mining, which is its major value. However, it also has a portfolio of exploration rights across the Arabian Shield, which we view as a highly prospective minerals belt, especially for both gold and copper. We're working with Ma'aden to expand our partnership across that region.

Unidentified Analyst, Analyst

Just a quick question on Lumwana and the electricity situation in Zambia. Is there any update on the availability and some of the power plants there?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

It's great to see you, Justin. We've put significant effort into the feasibility of our power expansion. We conducted a comprehensive survey of the Zambian power grid. We've managed power effectively in two ways. First, due to low water levels in the Zambezi River, we collaborated with the state power utility to transport power through the grid from neighboring countries in a cost-effective manner, significantly cheaper than operating diesel engines. Secondly, we identified considerable power loss in the grid caused by poor synchronization from various sources. In partnership with Barrick, we are addressing this issue, aiming to unlock around 500 megawatts of power. We've invested in technology to resynchronize the power supply, and First Quantum is contributing to this effort by investing in STATCOMs, which function as synchronizers. We're also funding additional redundancy power lines to create loops in the feed and partnering with ZESCO. Now that we have the necessary permits for power expansion, we are confident that together with First Quantum, we can meet the increased demand for power from our expansion efforts. Moreover, several power projects within the Zambian grid are poised for investment and can yield low-cost power. There is even conversation about potentially exporting power from Zambia to the DRC, which is quite surprising since the DRC is a significant power hub in Central Africa. Additionally, Tanzania has recently finished a large hydro facility, which, once fully developed, will offer substantial capacity and is currently in negotiations to link infrastructure in the region. The entire SADC region is increasingly focused on integrating their power infrastructure, creating numerous opportunities to enhance power supply security and cost-effectiveness. We are actively involved in these initiatives and are confident in our plans to support the Lumwana expansion.

Operator, Operator

The first question will come from Matthew Murphy with BMO Capital Markets.

Matthew Murphy, Analyst

Just a couple of questions on sort of the sequential outlook for the back half of the year. One would be Pueblo Viejo and particularly the focus on improving recoveries. Do you still target 85% recovery in Q4? Or how are you thinking about that? And the other would be the Nevada Gold Mines cost trajectory. How do you feel about the path to lower gold unit costs back half of the year?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

If you do the math, Matthew, there's an improvement in production across the group, especially at Nevada Gold Mines. Right now, if you account for the increase in gold price, we are guiding that we will reach our targets on a group basis by the end of the year. At Pueblo Viejo, the primary focus is on throughput. Due to delays in the expansion, particularly with the tailings facility, we have a significant stockpile that we blend with the fresh ore. Some of that stockpile is high grade, but it's deteriorating. Back in 2019, we conducted a comprehensive evaluation of those stockpiles for 2020, and we have begun another campaign. Our view is that we need to examine that mix and include the older stockpiles, which are higher grade. In this gold price environment, this approach improves cash flow since the stockpiles have already been paid for. We will provide updates as we progress. There has always been discussion around the recoveries and profile, and we will keep you informed on what that looks like over time. Graham, do you want to add?

Graham Patrick Shuttleworth, CFO

I would just add, Matt, that in terms of guidance for the second half of the year, obviously, we did guide 46%, 54% for the first half, second half. But then we've also guided that each quarter is sequentially better. So you can do the math yourself, but if it's 54% and 27% at the midpoint, maybe it's 26%, 28% or something like that, just to give you some sort of broad parameters in terms of what you can expect step-ups.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

And I think, Matt, to wrap up, as you know, we experienced some downtime that I mentioned earlier in my presentation. For Goldstrike roaster, Gold Quarry roaster, and the autoclaves, we had the Rwanda replacement and a motor replacement in Kibali. We weren't down completely, but we were intermittently down for 35 days in PV. Many of the significant issues, including retrofitting and planned maintenance, are behind us. So we expect a reasonably good run until the end of the year, which aligns with Graham's outline of our expected performance. There’s nothing magical about the numbers.

Operator, Operator

Our next question will come from Anita Soni with CIBC.

Anita Soni, Analyst

Could you provide an update on the stockpile in terms of millions of tons or how many tons you plan to process as you resequence?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

So it's quite a bit. Simon, are you on the line? Anita mentioned it, but I would estimate it's about 10 million ounces in stockpiles. There's 20 million to the end of the life, so it's significant. I can retrieve the numbers since they are available in our filings.

Anita Soni, Analyst

An update on the tailings. Can you give us an idea of the throughput? It was quite high and impressive at PV. When we think about the tailings facility, how much capacity do you have moving forward? Also, how should we consider the second phase and when will you need it?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

We have plans in place until 2030, including some flexibility to extend the lifespan of the current tailings facility. Although it's not the most urgent priority right now, we are focused on scheduling the construction of the tailings facility to accommodate the tailings by the end of this decade.

Anita Soni, Analyst

All right. Moving to Turquoise Ridge, can you remind me if you are also going through stockpiles there? I mean you're mining much higher grades than you're processing. When do you think you'll start reverting to achieve a higher blend of the underground material compared to stockpiles?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

It's important right now with some of the high-grade, high-carbon material. You need to blend to manage the recoveries. The Life of Mine plan focuses on managing that blend. As you saw this quarter, there's still some capacity for throughput. The recoveries are in good shape, and Turquoise Ridge is a significant asset. There are additional opportunities in the open pits. Is Simon on? Simon?

Unidentified Company Representative, Representative

Yes. I'm here. Can you hear me now?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

There was a question about the stockpile tonnage and grades at PV.

Unidentified Company Representative, Representative

Yes. So we've about 97 million tonnes at 2.45 grams a tonne, so portions of that stockpile will run as high as 2.7 grams, so.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

There we are. That's the answer. And if you look at the stockpiles at Turquoise Ridge?

Unidentified Company Representative, Representative

Then sorry, one second, I need to get those numbers fair.

Anita Soni, Analyst

Okay. I'll ask my last question and then.

Unidentified Company Representative, Representative

I'll come back to you.

Anita Soni, Analyst

I'm currently about two-thirds of the way through my modeling for Porgera. I understand it's a small contribution, but it appears that there is a significant ramp-up happening to return to previous run rates after the issues caused by the landslide in the country. What should we expect for the second half of the year, and what are the projections for 2026?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

We've successfully reoptimized Porgera. The dividends we've distributed and the percentage received by our investors, including Engine and ourselves, are significant. We're actively working to recover the investment made during the care and maintenance period. This means that a greater portion of every dollar we earn is returned to our investors, which is essential. Additionally, we continue to be one of the major contributors to the treasury in Papua New Guinea. Recently, the Prime Minister issued a press release praising Porgera for its contributions. Graham, would you like to add anything?

Graham Patrick Shuttleworth, CFO

I wanted to mention that in terms of production, the outlook is slightly better than the first half, but not significantly. Regarding your earlier question on Turquoise Ridge, we have 26 million tonnes at 2.26 grams per ton on stockpile.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

I think it's important for analysts reaching out to our team to understand that Barrick's policy is not to design Life of Mines to maximize NPV. Instead, we focus on long-term delivery to fully optimize the orebody. This has always been our approach, and we will continue to follow it. When creating models, it's essential to keep in mind our philosophy, which differs significantly from others in the industry. As a result, you won't see significant production growth initially followed by a steep decline at the end of the Life of Mine.

Operator, Operator

Our next question will come from Josh Wolfson with RBC.

Joshua Mark Wolfson, Analyst

Going back to Slide 10, the existing resource appears to be significantly less than half of the footprint highlighted in green. Additionally, the grade seems to be around 50% or slightly higher, which is substantially lower than what is currently stated compared to the delineated area. This suggests some notable updates regarding this asset. First, is this the correct way to interpret the information? Secondly, there was an initial PEA released late last year that mentioned over 0.5 million ounces with annual production rates and associated throughput rates. Should we still consider those economic criteria to be valid if the reserve ultimately reflects what is shown on this slide?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

Josh, I'm not sure where to begin. How much more information do you need? We are currently busy with this evaluation. The numbers we shared with you at the end of last year are included in the table. We receive new results every day, and they need to be verified. As you can imagine, drilling these long boreholes takes a considerable amount of time. The preliminary numbers reflect the drilling completed up to that point. The black dots indicate the finished boreholes, while the yellow dots represent those still to be drilled. Important results are still expected from this orebody, and the yellow ones denote drilling planned for 2025. Some have been drilled, indicated by the white arrows, but others have yet to be drilled or we've not yet received results for them. This interpretation is based on the early-stage drilling we've done, and the continuity is proving to be better than anticipated. These are significant findings. When we have you out there later, after Denver, if you're able to join us, you can see it for yourself, but it's quite substantial.

Joshua Mark Wolfson, Analyst

I'll see you there. I guess the second question I have is thinking about the valuation of the stock and also, I guess, in the context of the upside you're Fourmile, how are you thinking about capital allocation? When I look at this quarter's results, buyback levels were healthy, they increased from last quarter. There was also a big disposition that helped the cash position, but some of that went to the dividend, that inflow from an asset sale might not be repeated in the future, but it might be. So bottom on, I guess, is how would you be allocating cash here going forward and how important is the buyback?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

I think we are on track with our commitment to the $1 billion buyback strategy, which has reached $411 million year-to-date. This aligns with how we manage our capital allocation. We maintain a disciplined approach to capital allocation, as Graham and I have done since we started working together. Graham, would you like to add anything?

Graham Patrick Shuttleworth, CFO

Yes. I believe that the combination of the performance dividend and buybacks provides us with the flexibility to respond to the current situation. Currently, we have $1 billion set aside, and as we assess any excess capital, we have various options. If we exhaust the designated funds, we can certainly increase the buyback. We are always on the lookout for opportunities and can maintain the performance dividend as well. It's essential to leverage our options and maintain our flexibility. Given that the shares are significantly undervalued, buybacks will increasingly be a priority for us.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

And Josh, I'd like to add that if you look at Lumwana, when we guided the overall capital contribution for this year, we're at a stage now where, unless the copper price significantly weakens, we'll cover all the capital this year for Lumwana. This will materially reduce the headline $2 billion going forward. What we're indicating is that if you consider Barrick's 5-year plan, it can be easily funded from internal resources. Regarding the sale of noncore assets, some of that will be managed within our capital allocation guidelines, as Graham mentioned, and some will go toward share buybacks, which makes sense due to the reduction in production. Part of it will also be returned to shareholders, reflecting the extraordinary benefits. I've always believed that when unexpected opportunities arise, they should be shared with our owners, and that’s what we aim to do. On the capital side, we feel confident in our ability to fund our future. One point to note is that the market has not fully understood that once we can demonstrate the financing of Reko Diq, it will alleviate the market's concern about the gearing that has been frequently discussed. We anticipate some significant catalysts nearly every quarter leading up to the beginning of 2028.

Operator, Operator

Our next question will come from Tanya Jakusconek with Scotiabank. I believe that Tanya is having some audio issues. We can move on to the next question.

John Charles Tumazos, Analyst

Could you update us on your Canadian tax loss position, whether they expire at a particular point in time, American ones do some time, and how that interacts in the decision to sell Hemlo or maybe buy something to replace it.

Graham Patrick Shuttleworth, CFO

John, it's Graham. We have around $2 billion of ordinary losses and another $2 billion of capital losses. As a rule, they expire in around 20 years, but some of them don't expire at all. So we have quite a lot of headroom and runway on those tax losses. And certainly, in the context of the disposal of Hemlo, they would certainly be useful in protecting the proceeds of that sale substantially.

Operator, Operator

Our last question will come from Martin Pradier with Veritas Investment Research.

Martin Pradier, Analyst

My question is on Tanzania. What is the price at which you have to sell that 20%?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

The spot price is a market-related price, which is why we were cautious this quarter to ensure everything was in order. We have proposed either retrieving the gold from the rand refinery in a refined state or selling it to other buyers in Tanzania, but it must go through the Central Bank, and we need to agree on the procedure for check assays and resolve any disagreements on that. The positive aspect is we gain a 3% benefit since we do not incur duties on that export because it is internal. Therefore, the current gold prices are significantly beneficial for us. We are actively engaging with the Tanzanian government to ensure that everyone is aligned on how this process works and that we have solid binding agreements in place.

Martin Pradier, Analyst

And just last question. If you could share how advanced are you in the conversations about Tongon? Because I've read in the news that there were some offers. And could we see something at the end of this quarter?

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

The 1 thing I can say without fear of contradiction, don't listen to the scuttlebug of some of these reporters. As you know, these processes run as very controlled progress led by our investment banking partners, and we do not disclose where we are until the process is closed. We definitely engage with our host countries in the process, but it would be unprofessional to leak or disclose the progress or even the participants in such a process.

Operator, Operator

This concludes the Q&A. I will now turn the call back to Mark Bristow for closing remarks.

Dennis Mark Bristow, President and CEO

Well, thank you, ladies and gentlemen. As I said, not a particularly enthusiastic day for gold today given the rumors of charges on gold bars that came out at the end of last week. But as a business, a solid performance on the back of the start in quarter 1, a very clear destination insights on delivering overall for the year. And again, I think this is a great example of the way we allocate capital, the tremendous value that we've embedded in this organization. And really, it's when you grow NAV, it's always a challenge to daylight it, much easier to do M&A, but that organic growth is where you really do create value in the mining industry, and we're extremely well positioned to be able to deliver on that. So thank you, again, for those who came and particularly in this nice London weather. And for the rest, we will see you, hopefully, at Denver and then after that, those who are joining us on the trip, it will be good to catch up. So with that, thank you very much again, and speak to you soon.

Operator, Operator

This concludes today's event. Should you have any questions, please contact Barrick's Investor Relations department. Thank you for joining us.