By Jeff Lewis
Sept 12 (Reuters) - Gold bull John Paulson's investor
coalition on Thursday urged the world's largest gold miners to
immediately cut what it called excessive governance and
administrative (G&A) costs and said smaller rivals should pursue
no-premium mergers to boost shareholder returns.
Concerns over global growth and trade uncertainties have
pushed gold prices to multi-year highs, stoking expectations of
deals among miners and reviving anxieties over cost control.
This month, gold climbed to its highest level since 2013
hitting $1,503.04 per ounce Thursday.
Major miners including Polymetal, Kinross Gold
Corp and Newmont Goldcorp Corp spend nearly two
times more on G&A than non-gold producing rivals, Paulson's
Shareholders Gold Council said in a report.
Among mid-tier producers, Golden Star Resources,
Jaguar Mining, Petropavlovsk, Dundee Precious
Metals and Eldorado Gold Corp have the highest
spending levels.
The investor group urged the smaller gold miners to seek
nil-premium mergers to eliminate duplication and lower costs.
"If the gold producers brought down their G&A levels closer
to other mining peers, then $13 billion of value could be
unlocked for shareholders," the report said.
The coalition was launched last fall by Paulson's U.S. hedge
fund Paulson & Co. It includes Adrian Day Asset Management,
Apogee Global Advisors, AMG Fondsverwaltung AG, Delbrook
Capital, Equinox Partners LP, Equity Management Associates, John
Hathaway, Kopernik Global Investors, Livermore Partners, La
Mancha and Sun Valley Gold.
(Reporting by Jeff Lewis; editing by David Evans)