⚠ Irreplaceable Assets Can Still Be TakenHigh threat

Barrick Mining (B) — threat to the moat

An orebody nobody could recreate is also one Barrick cannot move, hedge or sell to a buyer who escapes its government.

The irreplaceability case says that a deposit like Nevada or Kibali could not be recreated by anyone with any amount of capital, because the geology is unique and the permitting alone would take a decade. That is true, and it has an inconvenient corollary.

Loulo-Gounkoto tonnes mined (thousands)0Q2 2025390Q1 20262,738Q2 2026Barrick Q2 2026 MD&A (Form 6-K); control regained 16 December 2025
A Tier-One mine produced nothing for close to a year, and is only now back at scale.

An asset that cannot be replaced also cannot be relocated, hedged, or sold to a buyer who escapes its risks. Barrick discovered exactly what that means in Mali, where the Loulo-Gounkoto complex — an asset of precisely this irreplaceable quality — was taken over by the authorities1, and returned in December 2025 only after close to a year's shutdown and the adoption of the 2023 Mining Code2. The very characteristics that make an orebody valuable make it a fixed target for whoever governs the ground.

The same logic applies to a more ordinary risk. An irreplaceable asset concentrates operational exposure: a mill failure, a pit-wall collapse or a permitting dispute at one of six Tier-One mines removes a disproportionate share of production, and there is nothing to substitute it with.

What makes the argument work in Barrick's favour is Nevada, where the property right behind the asset is as durable as the geology, which is why the planned separate listing of the North American business is a way of letting the market price that difference explicitly.

The number to watch is the share of production and reserves under jurisdictions with enforceable mining title. Irreplaceability is only an asset where ownership is secure.

References
  1. ReportedBarrick's geopolitical friction centred on the Loulo-Gounkoto complex in Mali, an asset of exactly this quality.
    Gold-miner peer comparison, 2025 results and 2026 guidance — Newmont led global production with 5.89 million attributable ounces in 2025; Agnico Eagle secured the number two global position with payable gold production of 3.447 million ounces, exceeding Barrick's 3.26 million ounces by nearly 200,000; Barrick's all-in sustaining costs rose 10% year on year to $1,637 per ounce in 2025 and are guided to $1,760-$1,950 for 2026, with cash costs of $1,330-$1,470 against $1,199 in 2025, while Agnico guided 2026 AISC of $1,400-$1,550 per ounce; Agnico trades at a forward twelve-month earnings multiple of about 11.5x, roughly 21.7% above the industry average of 9.48x; AngloGold and Agnico Eagle separated themselves from the pack through superior cost control and jurisdiction management while Barrick struggled with geopolitical friction, notably the dispute with Mali's authorities over the Loulo-Gounkoto complex — FY2025 / 2026 guidance · publ. 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedLoulo-Gounkoto was returned in December 2025 only after close to a year's shutdown and the adoption of the 2023 Mining Code.
    Barrick second quarter 2026 MD&A (SEC Form 6-K exhibit 99.2) - Loulo-Gounkoto: operations suspended from January 2025, control regained on 16 December 2025 after the dispute with the Government of Mali was resolved, including adoption of the 2023 Mining Code; ramp-up ahead of schedule; revenue, production, costs and cash flow for Q2 and H1 2026 — Q2 2026 · publ. 2026-08-11 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 23, 2026