To help ensure the continued development of mining-disciplined engineers and to encourage the continued enrollment in mining-disciplined engineering, Barrick Gold of North America recently established the Barrick Gold Scholarship fund at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.
This non-endowed fund will provide a total of nine scholarships per year for the current and next academic years to support freshman, sophomore and upperclassmen. Recipients must have at least a 2.8 grade point average, and first preference will be given to students who have completed an internship at Barrick Gold of North America.
"Barrick acknowledges that the School of Mines is one of the few remaining schools specializing in mining, geological and metallurgical engineering and one that graduates quality engineers," Dana Pray, spokesperson for Barrick Gold of North America, said. "We also recognize that the industry must encourage and support students through scholarship and internship programs as well as employment after graduation."
Barrick is the world's pre-eminent gold producer, with a portfolio of 27 operating mines, many advanced exploration and development projects located across five continents and large land positions on the most prolific and prospective mineral trends. The company also has the largest reserves in the industry, with 124.6 million ounces of proven and probable gold reserves, 6.2 billion pounds of copper reserves and 1.03 billion ounces of contained silver within gold reserves.
North America is Barrick's largest producing region and is comprised of 10 operating mines: Goldstrike Property (including Betze-Post open pit and Meikle and Rodeo underground mines); Round Mountain, Bald Mountain, Cortez (including the Cortez Hills project), Turquoise Ridge, Golden Sunlight, Ruby Hill and Marigold mines in the U.S.; and the Hemlo Joint Venture in Ontario, Canada. The North American region has 45 million ounces of proven and probable gold reserves, which represents 35 percent of the company's total reserve base (does not include additional 40 percent stake in Cortez acquired in early 2008). The region produced 3.2 million ounces of gold in 2007 at total cash costs of $370 per ounce.
Barrick employs at least 15 engineers in North America who are School of Mines graduates.
