Prospectors, companies and everything in between have been staking claims and pulling the precious metal out of the Nevada soil for hundreds of years. It’s home to one of the biggest and most lucrative gold trends on the planet, and that’s the Battle Mountain Eureka Gold Trend.
The trend is approximately 100 miles long and is well-known for its significant gold deposits and mining activity and extends through several counties, including Lander, Eureka, and Humboldt, and others.
Some of the largest companies in the world are drawn to the trend to take advantage of the region’s infrastructure, stable regulatory environment and access to experienced mining resources.
Here are five of the top companies arranged by market cap.
1. Newmont Corporation
Market Cap: USD$58 billion
Following last month’s merger with Australian gold powerhouse Newcrest Mining, Newmont Corporation (TSX: NGT) (NYSE: NEM) has secured itself as the biggest gold company not just in Nevada, but the world.
Established in 1921, the company possesses gold mines located in various regions, including Nevada and Colorado in the United States as well as Ontario and Quebec in Canada. It also has mines in Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Australia, Ghana, Argentina, Peru, and Suriname. Beyond gold, Newmont also engages in the extraction of copper, silver, zinc and lead.
Newmont shares a joint venture in Nevada with Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX: ABX) called Nevada Gold Mines.
A bird’s eye view of the Goldstrike mine, part of the Nevada Gold Mines JV. Image from Lithium6ion via Wikimedia Commons.
Revenues declined by 5 per cent to $2.5 billion over the same time last year due to lower sales volumes, despite the increase in average realized prices for gold and copper. In Q3 2023, Newmont achieved an average realized gold price of $1,920 per ounce for 1.29 million ounces of production. Actual gold production looks similarly stifled at 1.3 million attributable gold ounces, and 58,000 in equivalents from copper.
The fall in earnings was due to reduced gold production, largely driven by a strike at the company’s mine in Mexico and supply chain disruptions.
Read more: Calibre Mining reports record year-to-date earnings in Q3 financials
Read more: Calibre Mining intercepts high-grade gold below Jabali mine, identifies 3 new gold targets
2. Barrick Gold Corporation
Market Cap: USD$38 billion
Barrick Gold was the biggest gold company in the world until 2019 when Newmont Corporation bought Goldcorp. After which, it attempted a hostile takeover of Newmont, and ended up having a majority stake in the newly formed Nevada Gold Mines.
This collaborative venture established the world’s largest gold mining complex and employed over 7,000 people. It combined Barrick’s Goldstrike, Cortez, Turquoise Ridge, and Goldrush mines with Newmont’s Carlin, Twin Creeks, Phoenix, and Long Canyon sites, integrating the processing plants and infrastructure from both companies.
Nevada Gold Mines. Image from Barrick Gold.
Nevada Gold Mines recently collaborated with the Nevada Department of Wildlife, Idaho Fish and Game and the United States Geological Survey to re-introduce the endangered Columbian Sharp-tailed Grouse into Nevada.
Barrick Gold has posted net earnings of USD$368 million for the third quarter of this year, representing a 21 per cent increase compared with USD$241 million in the corresponding quarter of 2022.
Improved performances at Cortez, Turquoise Ridge, and Kibali drove higher gold production in Q3 compared to Q2. As previously stated, the ramp-up at Pueblo Viejo is progressing slower than initially planned. Barrick is actively collaborating with original equipment suppliers to devise permanent solutions for the equipment failures. Despite these challenges, the 2024 Pueblo Viejo production forecast still surpasses 800,000 ounces (100% basis). The company’s total numbers in early November were 1 million attributable gold ounces at $1,928 per ounce.
Outside of Nevada, Barrick has properties in North, Central and South America, Africa and the Middle East.
3. Kinross Gold Corporation
Market Cap: USD$9.1 billion
Founded in 1993, Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE: KGC) (TSX: K) is a gold and silver mining company based in Canada, with its headquarters located in Toronto, Ontario. It operates six months spread out between Brazil, Mauritania and the United States.
It operates the Bald Mountain Gold Mine, which is located within the Battle Mountain Eureka Trend.
A bird’s-eye view of the mule deer migration route located in Bald Mountain reclamation route. Image via Kinross.
Kinross reported strong results for its third quarter financials, remaining on track to meet its 2023 annual guidance ranges for production, cost of sales per ounce, all-in sustaining cost, and attributable capital expenditures.
The company posted net earnings of USD$109.7 million, marking a 66 per cent increase from the same quarter last year when it was USD$65.9 million.
The company announced a 29 per cent year-over-year revenue increase, with revenue rising to USD$1.1 billion from USD$856.5 million in 2022. It also disclosed an operating cash flow of USD$406.8 million and an adjusted operating cash flow of USD$470.6 million.
Read more: Calibre Mining Q3 gold production numbers exceed analyst expectations: Canaccord Genuity
4. SSR Mining
Market cap: USD$3.2 billion
SSR Mining Inc. (TSX: SSRM) (NYSE: SSRM) produces gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc based in Denver, owns the largest silver mine in Argentina. The company also conducts exploration activities across the Americas and Turkey. In 2020, SSR Mining completed a merger with Alacer Gold, resulting in the company relocating its headquarters to Denver, Colorado.
The company’s primary mine is in the Jujuy Province of Argentina. The Pirquitas mine holds reserves sufficient for 14.5 years of production at an average annual rate of 10 million ounces of silver and 2,500 tonnes of tin.
SSR has been operating the Marigold gold mine in Nevada, specifically in Humboldt County since 1988.
The company achieved a record gold production of 83,272 ounces in the third quarter of 2023, with a cost of sales of $980 per ounce and an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,106 per ounce. This translated to a portion of the company’s overall revenue for the third quarter, which was USD$385 million.
Last month SSR Mining Inc. announced that it has made a definitive agreement to sell its Sunrise Lake Property to Honey Badger Silver Inc. (TSXV:TUF) in exchange for a 4.0 per cent net smelter return (NSR) royalty on the property.
5. Calibre Mining
Market cap: USD$568,000
Calibre Mining Corp. (TSX: CXB) (OTCQX: CXBMF) is the latest addition to this elite grouping, having been elevated to its new standing as a mid-tier producer from a junior by this month’s merger with Marathon Gold Corp. (TSX: MOZ).
The deal is an all-stock transaction worth CAD$345 million with an estimated annual production of 500,000 ounces per year and a top-tier gold project to its portfolio. Curiously enough, the market cap is low compared to some of the other entrants on this list, but it’s unlikely that it will stay there given the recent merger.
Calibre holds assets in various stages of development in the United States and Nicaragua. More specifically, its properties in Nevada include the Pan Mine. The production values coming out of the Pan Mine left analysts from Haywood Securities impressed in the summer.
Birds eye view of Calibre’s Pan Mine property. Image via Calibre Mining.
The company achieved its most outstanding performance this quarter in terms of gold sales, setting a fourth consecutive quarterly record by selling 73,241 ounces. This resulted in a total revenue of USD$143.9 million, with an average realized gold price of USD$1,929 per ounce.
The Battle Mountain-Eureka Trend remains a global hub for gold mining, attracting companies of all sizes, from industry giants to emerging players, all contributing to the region’s prosperity and cementing its status as a gold mining powerhouse. As these companies continue to thrive and expand their operations, the trend’s significance in the global gold industry is set to endure.
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