11 Biggest Gold Mining Companies in the World

It seems every day is golden at the 11 biggest gold mining companies in the world. The world loves its gold and these are the companies who have had the greatest contribution to the world’s gold production. And, though the world gold production has been dwindling and most of the companies being faced with divestment decisions, the Top 10 players at least have been successful in holding fast to their positions.

Gold mining companies can be compared based on many different criteria, for instance by cash cost per ounce or by market capitalization, and each time the results can be significantly different. However, for the purpose of this list we have ranked the biggest gold mining companies by their tones attributable to Gold Production as based on the Gold Focus 2015. And, when we compare it to previous year’s report we find some output falls this year among the two biggest players in the industry. While Barrick Gold suffered a decrease of 13% from its last year’s production, Newmont suffered a blow of 4%. Also, even though the Top 10 persisted, there have been changes in ranks within them.

Gold is one of the most important industries in the world, one which has a great deal of impact on the world economy. Not only is it adored as jewelry material, it is also added to the precious reserves of the countries. It’s no secret that gold prices effect economies the same way oil prices do. But talking of important industries Defense and National Security also forms an integral part of it and if you don’t know about the biggest players in the defense industry, head to our list of the 6 Biggest Defense Companies in the World.

Country-wise China, Russia, USA and Australia are one of the largest gold-mining countries  and not surprisingly, these are the very countries where most of our top contenders on the list operate. While, China also happens to be the greatest consumer of gold, contrary to trends suggesting India as the biggest gold consuming nation.

So let’s get busy unearthing the biggest gold mining companies which are producing most of the gold for the world.

11. Agnico Eagle,

The Canadian Company produced 44.4 tonnes of gold in 2014 and catapulted itself ahead in the list from last year. It managed to beat China National Gold and Freeport which were previously ahead of it. Possibly due to the consolidation of Osisko into its production gave it its edge.

10. Sibanye,

The largest gold producer of South Africa, own and operates four underground and surface gold operations. Its  production of gold in 2014 was at 49.4 tonnes. The company produces refined gold bars with a purity of at least 99.5% to be sold in international markets.

9. Polyus,

Polyus of Russia is purported to hold the world’s third-largest gold reserves with more than 90 million ounces of gold reserves. The production for 2014 touched 52.7 tonnes. The company is the largest London-listed gold producer and holds a premium listing on the LSE.

8. Navoi,

The Uzbekistan based gold company had a production as high as 61 tonnes in 2014. The most important deposits of the company lie in the Kyzyl Kum desert.

7. Gold Fields,

Yet, another South African player makes its entry at 7^th position among the biggest gold mining companies. Its operations range from South Africa to Australia, and the company is known to be open to gold explorations world over. It is also listed on both the Johannesburg Stock Exchange as well as the New York Stock Exchange.

6. Newcrest,

Newcrest Mining in Australia involves itself in the exploration, developing and mining of gold and gold-copper concentrate. It has been successful in expanding its operations beyond the borders of Australia and now has its presence internationally. The production for 2014 was an impressive 72.4 tonnes.

5. Kinross,

The company originally based in Canada has expanded its operations in a number of countries including, United States, Chile, Brazil and Russia. It also owns a total of 10 active gold mines in four continents as of now. The production in 2014 reached up to 83 tonnes.

4. Goldcorp.,

Goldcorp owns a number of mines located in the United States, Mexico, Canada and South America. Even though it has run into occasional issues and accusations of harming the environment, it has been able to maintain its position among the biggest players with its unperturbed flow of production which is around 89.3 tonnes this year.

3. AngloGold Ashanti,

The company is a global one in a true sense, with 21 operations in 4 continents and it is also listed on more than one stock exchange. In 2014 the production attributable to the company was a whopping 138 tonnes.

2. Newmont Mining,

Based out of Greenwood Village, Colorado, the gold mining company has active mines in Nevada, Indonesia, Australia, Ghana, Peru and New Zealand. In 2010 it was purported to have reserves of about 93.5 million. It also delves into copper and silver while its gold production was as high as 150.7 tonnes.

1. Barrick Gold,

And rounding up at the 1st spot of the biggest gold mining companies in the world is the Canadian company, Barrick Gold, with an unprecedented production of 194.4 tonnes in the year 2014. The company also has the largest gold reserve in the world of up to 104 million ounces.