Many top gold companies suffer reserve depletion in 2001 but Barrick grows its gold in the ground

摘要

Barrick's 4 percent increase in reserves, after including the Homestake Mining assets, is principally down to increases of 115 percent and 20 percent at Veladoro and Bulyanhulu respectively. Veladoro's reserves grew from 3.9 Moz at the end of 2000, to 8.4 Moz after an intensive drilling programme in 2001 Bulyanhulu's reserves increased from 10 Moz to 12 Moz.The Cowal gold project, in New South Wales, acquired from Rio into in 2001, has added estimated reserves of 2.8 Moz.Partially offsetting these increases was a deterioration in reserves at the Goldstrike property, where the Betze-Post pit saw reserves fall 9 percent to 16.4 Moz and Meikle suffered a 39 percent drop to 3.9 Moz. Barrick had to reclassify 0.75 Moz of Meikle reserves to resources after underground mining experience in 2001 necessitated a reassessment of assumptions. Additionally, Barrick determined that 0.95 Moz of reserves in smaller more difficult areas of the orebody could not be mined economically and these ounces were removed from reserve.