The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Feb. 23, edition that Barrick Gold is not planning any major mergers or acquisitions deals. The Globe's Niall McGee writes that chairman John Thornton said Thursday: "When times are good, companies overpay for mediocre assets and invest in projects with low returns. At Barrick, this will not happen. We are putting in place the discipline to make certain this is the case." Mr. Thornton said that Barrick had examined a number of external M&A opportunities last year, but passed. Barrick is attempting to make up for a significant M&A misstep from the past. In 2011, it paid $7.3-billion (U.S.) in cash to buy Equinox Minerals. The acquisition proved to be a financial disaster. Less than two years later, Barrick wrote down the value of the assets by $3.8-billion (U.S.). Chief investment officer Mark Hill will be applying extra scrutiny to any potential M&A transactions. Chief financial officer Catherine Raw said, "The first thing is not to assume we can solve our problems through M&A." Ms. Raw added that Barrick's focus will instead be on its existing portfolio of assets. Barring major acquisitions, however, Barrick's long-term production is declining.