Newmont is studying a potential deal to gain control of Canadian rival Barrick Mining’s prized Nevada gold assets, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Denver-based Newmont has a minority stake in a Nevada gold mining joint venture with Barrick, which is operated and majority owned by Barrick. Newmont is in the early stages of considering various transaction structures that would allow it to gain full ownership of the assets, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

It’s unclear how receptive Barrick would be to any overtures, especially as the Nevada gold mines are considered to be among its most valuable assets. Newmont could consider options including a bid for Barrick’s stake in the venture as well as a full takeover of the company followed by divestments of assets it views as non-core, the people said.

The US miner is less interested in Barrick’s African operations and the large Reko Diq copper-gold project in Pakistan, some of the people said. Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty the companies will pursue any deal, the people said.

Representatives for Newmont and Barrick declined to comment. Shares of Barrick, which is listed in New York and Toronto, have roughly doubled this year on the back of a record rally in gold prices, giving the miner a market value of about $54 billion. Newmont shares have gained 129% in US trading this year, giving the company a market capitalization of $93 billion.

Shares of Barrick rose as much as 4.5% in New York trading.

Barrick’s operations in Pakistan, Mali and Papua New Guinea have weighed on the company’s shares in recent years as it wrestles with operational setbacks in each country. Its North American assets, meanwhile, have benefitted from recent expansions and safer jurisdictions.

The Nevada joint venture between the companies dates back to 2019. Barrick had made a hostile takeover bid for Newmont — which at the time was the smaller of the two companies — before eventually dropping the offer and instead agreeing to pool together their nearby projects in the US state.

In the past year, Toronto-based Barrick itself has studied the possibility of a split or breakup, some of the people said. In one potential scenario, it could separate into two listed companies, hiving off its top-tier North American operations from the rest of its sprawling portfolio in more challenging jurisdictions, they said. It’s unclear if the idea is still under consideration.

Barrick is seen as vulnerable after announcing the surprise departure of Chief Executive Officer Mark Bristow in September. It appointed Mark Hill, the head of its Latin American and Asia Pacific regions, as interim CEO while it looks for a permanent replacement. John Thornton, a former Goldman Sachs Group investment banker, is chairman of Barrick.

On the same day that Barrick announced Bristow’s departure, Newmont said Tom Palmer would step down from the CEO role on Dec. 31 and be succeeded by Chief Operating Officer Natascha Viljoen, in what was a largely expected transition.

Newmont investors could be wary of any major move. The company’s expenses jumped after it acquired Australia’s Newcrest Mining Ltd. in 2023 for around $15-billion. The company has been studying plans to drive down costs that could lead to deep job cuts, Bloomberg News reported in August.