Bristow, who became CEO in 2019 when Barrick acquired Randgold, oversaw integration of the two companies and steered the miner through a period of significant portfolio reshaping and debt reduction.
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“Disappointed to see him leave, he has been a fine leader,” said Peter Letko, of the Letko Brosseau investment fund, one of Barrick’s shareholders.
Speaking in May, Bristow said the company had indicated he would stay in his current role until 2028, but added there was a succession program in place overseen by the board.
Shares in Barrick, which owns 13 mining assets across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and North America, have lagged some rivals, rising by 37% since 2020 compared to a 110% climb in shares of fellow Canadian miner Agnico Eagle with gold prices also hitting record highs.
Hill, who will also serve as group chief operating officer, takes charge immediately as the board begins a global search for a permanent chief executive with the help of an external firm.
Known for his mercurial leadership style, Bristow’s tenure at Barrick was focused on integrating tough assets that Barrick owned in some of the volatile regions of the world.
But his biggest test came this year when Barrick’s gold mine in Mali was taken over by the military government over alleged non-payment of taxes. Barrick had to write off $1 billion from its books over Mali.
U.S.-listed shares of Barrick were down marginally at $34.36 in premarket trading on Monday.
Reporting by Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru, Divya Rajagopal in Toronto and Clara Denina in London; Editing by Veronica Brown, Chandra Eluri, Mrigank Dhaniwala and Jan Harvey
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Divya Rajagopal reports on Canada mining sector, where she covers breaking news on critical minerals deals, takeovers and mergers in the mining sector and how miners deal with climate change and ESG imperatives. Divya previously worked as a financial journalist with Economic Times and CNBC TV18 based out of India. She holds a Masters in Global Affairs from the University of Toronto and a Masters in Technology and Social Change from Lund University, Sweden.