Wheaton River Hints At Continued Growth Via Acquisition
Tuesday September 23, 8:09 pm ET
VANCOUVER -(Dow Jones)- Intermediate gold producer Wheaton River Minerals Ltd. (WHT), which has been on an acquisitive binge this year, could buy out some of its existing joint-venture partners, president and chief executive Ian Telfer said Tuesday.
At the Denver Gold Forum, Telfer said he expects Teck Cominco Ltd. might sell its 79% stake in the El Limon (Morelos Norte) exploration property in Mexico. Vancouver-based Wheaton River is acquiring Miranda Mining Corp. , which owns the remaining 21% interest in El Limon.
Telfer also kept the door open to increasing Wheaton River's 37.5% interest in the Bajo de la Alumbrera gold/copper mine in Argentina.
"We'd certainly take a look at it," Telfer said, when asked whether Wheaton River would be a buyer if the other 50% of Alumbrera, owned by Xstrata plc , came up for sale.
Telfer's presentation was broadcast on the Internet.
Wheaton River increased its asset base this year via acquisitions in Argentina and Australia, and Telfer said the company hopes to "move up the ladder" on the list of intermediate gold producers, while reducing the percentage of revenue it obtains from copper.
At its 100%-owned Peak mine in Australia, Wheaton River has replaced several managers and cut staff by 20% since buying the mine in March and has increased the exploration budget to $4 million from $1.5 million in hopes of extending the mine life, Telfer said.
Overall, the company's annual production is expected to grow to 700,000 gold- equivalent ounces by 2006 (when its newly acquired Los Filos, Mexico, project starts producing gold), from more than 400,000 ounces this year.
In Toronto, Wheaton River shares closed Tuesday at a 52-week high of C$2.89 a share, up 3 Canadian cents, on almost 7 million shares.
The Denver Gold Forum continues through Wednesday.
AI
