The news that the world’s largest gold miner, Newmont, has bid to acquire Newcrest Mining has boosted Australian markets. Newmont (NYSE: NEM) announced today that it had submitted a non-binding proposal to achieve 100% of Newcrest Mining.

As of mid-afternoon Sydney time, Newcrest, the world’s seventh-largest gold miner, was up 12% to A$25.16. According to Reuters, the transaction is worth $16.9 billion. Gold mining mergers and acquisitions are on the rise. In the fall, Agnico Eagle and Pan American announced plans to purchase Yamana for $4.8 billion.

Newcrest stated in a press release that it was considering the proposal. Sandeep Biswas, the company’s CEO, retired in December. The company was looking for a long-term replacement.

Newcrest has made significant investments in northern British Columbia, also known as the Golden Triangle. It purchased Imperial Metals’ Red Chris Mine in the last decade. It acquired Pretium in 2021. Newmont has also been active in the region, acquiring GT Gold in 2021 for just under C$400 million.

Newmont is headquartered in Colorado, while Newcrest Mining is based in Melbourne, Australia. Newmont CEO Tom Palmer is well-versed in the Australian mining industry.

In Australia, he received his mining degrees. He then worked for Rio Tinto for 20 years before joining Newmont. Tyron Breytenbach, mining equity analyst and SVP at Aris Gold, described the transaction as “HUUUGE” in a tweet.