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Barrick Gold ( GOLD ) has been in dispute with Mali since 2023

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Mine site has around 4 tons of gold stocked, says employee

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Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger seek bigger revenues

(Adds background, detail on gold stocks, Barrick quote from

paragraph 2 onwards)

By Fadimata Kontao and Portia Crowe

BAMAKO/DAKAR Jan 13 (Reuters) - Mali's government has

begun enforcing a provisional order to seize gold stock at

Barrick Gold's ( GOLD ) Loulo-Gounkoto site, the Canadian miner said in a

note to Malian staff, warning again that it may have to suspend

operations at the complex.

The move suggests that Mali's military-led authorities

are not ready to back down in a

standoff

over a contract based on new mining rules as they push for

a greater share of revenues from Western miners.

"A provisional order to seize our existing gold stock was

issued last week and the Malian government began its enforcement

on Jan. 11," Barrick said in the staff memo.

Two Barrick employees in Mali and a consultant working for

mining companies confirmed the authenticity of the letter seen

by Reuters. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the employees

said it was sent to staff on Sunday.

Barrick has not said what volume of gold is at risk, but one

of the employees said Loulo-Gounkoto's stock was around 4 metric

tons, citing internal estimates. This amounts to nearly $380

million, based on spot gold prices on Monday.

Responding to a request for comment, Barrick said it had

nothing to add beyond what it said in a Jan. 6 statement.

In that statement, the world's second-biggest gold miner by

volume had warned that it would have to suspend operations at

Loulo-Gounkoto temporarily if restrictions on its gold shipments

were not lifted within the week.

The threat remains on the table. In Sunday's note to

staff, Barrick said "if the situation is not resolved quickly"

it may be forced to follow through on the suspension.

The Malian authorities did not immediately respond when

asked to comment.

Loulo-Gounkoto accounts for around 14% of Barrick's 2025

estimated gold output. Meanwhile gold is Mali's top foreign

currency earner, accounting for more than 80% of total exports

in 2023.

The dispute comes at a

delicate time for many Western miners

in West Africa, industry insiders say.

Military governments in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger are

all trying to renegotiate terms to gain a bigger share of mining

revenues after a series of coups that have seen them shift away

from their traditional backers France, the United States and the

United Nations towards Russia and elsewhere.

Mali, Africa's second-largest gold producer, has issued

an

arrest warrant

for Barrick Chief Executive Mark Bristow and detained

Barrick staff.

(Additional reporting by Giulia Paravicini, David Lewis and

Clara Denina

Writing by Alessandra Prentice

Editing by David Goodman and Sharon Singlton)