Well, that was quick. Last week I wondered what it would take to get Meridian Gold
I'm glad that's over with. Now that the gold-miner mating ritual has drawn to a close, what exactly are we dealing with here?
Yamana, Meridian, and Northern Orion Resources
Mineral sales, 70% of which are projected to come from gold, will be funding a very deep pipeline of development projects, some of which I've alluded to. New Yamana is now targeting 2.2 million ounces of gold production by 2012, which would more than double today's run rate in five years' time.
It's going to take some time for Yamana to digest these huge acquisitions. If gold prices resume their run at record highs, that process will go a lot quicker. I'm pretty neutral on the shares today, but I'll be eyeing them avariciously if we see a repeat of the mid-August freak out.
For more information on old Yamana, check out my two-part interview with Peter Marrone.