TORONTO, Ontario -- Barrick Gold Corp. (TSX:ABX) plans to cut at least US$500 million from spending on major projects this year and may sell non-core assets in response to lower prices and profit experienced in the first quarter. Jamie Sokalsky, Barrick's president and CEO, said the company is reducing its spending plans to ensure production will result in returns for investors. "We are committed to a disciplined approach to capital allocation, based on the principle that returns will drive production, production will not drive returns," Sokalsky said in a statement ahead of the company's annual meeting. "While we remain positive on the long-term fundamentals for gold and copper, we don't rely on higher metal prices to be the only driver of shareholder returns." Since the first quarter ended, gold prices have dropped even further and Barrick's stock price has fallen to the lowest levels in two decades. The June bullion contract fell Tuesday by $12.40 to US$1,408.80 an ounce and Barrick shares closed at C$18.01 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Sokalsky also said Barrick is still evaluating the impact of a regulatory decision that's affecting its Pascua-Lama mine, which straddles the border of Chile and Argentina. "At Pascua-Lama, we are working to address the environmental and other regulatory requirements on the Chilean side of the project," Sokalsky said. "Concurrently, we are taking a hard look at evaluating all alternatives in light of the uncertainties associated with the suspension of construction in Chile." Barrick had US$923 million or 92 cents per share of adjusted earnings in the first quarter, down from US$1.1 billion or $1.10 per share in the comparable period last year but better than analyst estimates. Net income before adjustments, reported in U.S. currency, was $847 million or 85 cents per share, down from $1.04 billion or $1.04 per share in the first quarter of 2012. Those results beat the consensus estimate of 85 cents per share or $852 million of adjusted earnings and 81 cents per share or $865 million of net income. Barrick said the main reason for the lower profit was lower gold and copper prices and reduced volumes sold during the quarter and that it's making a number of changes to cut spending. Capital spending will be reduced to between $5.2 billion and $5.7 billion -- down from the previous budget of $5.7 billion to $6.3 billion. Barrick is also reducing exploration spending to a range of between $300 million and $340 million, which is $100 million lower than before.

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