US gold miner Newmont Mining Corporation said in a statement Monday it was buying Canadian rival Goldcorp Inc for $10 billion, creating the world's largest gold mining company. Colorado-based Newmont said it would buy all of Goldcorp's outstanding common shares in a stock-for-stock transaction, acquiring each share for 0.3280 of a Newmont share, "which represents a 17 percent premium based on the companies' 20-day volume weighted average share prices," a company statement read.

The industry has been consolidating as gold mines around the world get depleted, driving up costs and encouraging companies to come together in mergers and alliances.

The merged company, to be named Newmont Goldcorp, will produce some 7.9 million ounces of gold a year. "This combination will create the world's leading gold business with the best assets, people, prospects and value-creation opportunities," said Newmont Chief Executive Officer Gary Goldberg. The merger "creates the world's premier gold company," added Goldcorp President and Chief Executive Officer David Garofalo.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2019