About

Described as a ‘uniquely talented attorney’, Francisco Charlín’s tenure as Barrick Gold legal director has been characterised by his remarkable work ethic. ‘There seems to be no hour at which he will not take a phone call or answer an email’, one source says. ‘Even better, he can consistently be counted upon to have the right answer for whomever is calling or emailing. His understanding of not only the legal matters surrounding his company’s industry, but the industry itself, is astounding in both its depth and its breadth’. Possessing a detailed understanding of his employer’s goals for expansion in Chile and how these goals relate to broader legal issues, Charlín has been a driving force behind key transactions for Barrick, which is currently the world’s largest gold mining company. Very recently Charlín captured attention in Chile with the swift execution of a transaction that resulted in a formation of a 50/50 joint venture (JV) with the Canadian gold producer Goldcorp. This JV will develop projects in north Chile’s gold belt and invest $520m into 20,000 hectares of mineral properties in the Maricunga District in the Cerro Cesale and Caspiche deposits. When asked about Charlín’s transactional expertise, a source shares: ‘His ability to think not just about the legal issues facing a given transaction, but the future ramifications of the transaction and what legal issues might flow from those ramifications, is something that all companies seek out in a GC, but few ever really find’. The mining industry is infamous for the legal challenges it faces, and having the support of Charlín will definitely help Barrick to expand its operations in Chile. When he joined Barrick in 2013, Charlín began reorganising the company’s Chilean legal structure and currently manages an expanding team of nine members. Before his successful tenure at the company, Charlín worked at Antafagosta, one of the Chile’s biggest mining companies. Between 1997 and 2013 he worked on various projects including one in Pakistan, when the company began investing in overseas projects.