An ongoing dispute over ownership stakes in Barrick’s operation in Mali has led to the arrest of mining officials, the government’s gold seizure and the company’s shutdown of its mine.

Mali’s military junta started executing an interim order to seize gold at a mine run by Barrick Gold Corp., escalating a dispute over the West African government’s share of revenues from the project.

Mali's military government is holding gold seized from Barrick Gold's Loulo-Gounkoto mine site at state-owned Banque Malienne de Solidarite (BMS), two sources said, as the miner pursues plans to suspend its operations in the country.

Canada’s Barrick Gold has suspended operations in Mali after the government seized gold from the company in an escalation of a dispute between the military junta and international mining groups. The Toronto and New York-listed company said in a statement that it had “regrettably initiated the temporary suspension of operations” at its Loulo-Gounkoto mining complex in the west African country.

Barrick Gold is suspending mining operations in Mali after the government seized gold stockpiles and issued an arrest warrant for Barrick's CEO. Bloomberg's William Clowes reports from Johannesburg. (

Canada's Barrick Gold on Tuesday confirmed it had suspended operations in Mali and that the government had moved gold stock from the miner's Loulo-Gounkoto site to a bank. Reuters reported on Monday that the authorities had seized gold worth $245 million in an escalation of their long-running dispute with the company.