The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that Barrick Gold's chief executive officer says he is open to a joint venture with Newmont Mining to combine the companies' Nevada operations instead of doing a takeover. The Globe's Niall McGee quotes Bark Bristow as saying Monday: "We would be delighted to meet Newmont to see if they're sincere, and see if a JV can be agreed upon. We'll consider [dropping the hostile bid] when we get a workable JV." Barrick last week proposed acquiring Colorado-based Newmont for $17.8-billion (U.S.) in a deal valued at 8 per cent below Newmont's stock price. Barrick said that no takeover premium was necessary because the combination of the two giants would generate at least $750-million (U.S.) a year in cost savings over the first five years. Most of those savings are in Nevada, where they both have large mines in the same region. On Monday, Newmont formally rejected Barrick's takeover offer, criticizing its "high risk" mine portfolio and its governance record, and calling out its new CEO, Mr. Bristow, for his inexperience in running a global miner. "The emperor doesn't have anything to sell," Gary Goldberg, CEO of Newmont, said regarding Mr. Bristow's attempts to woo investors.