Barrick says Pascua-Lama faces delays, cost-hikes

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — The world's highest-altitude gold mine has gone off-track, with production delayed for another year and costs rising by as much as $3 billion before Barrick Gold Corp. can begin extracting gold, the Canadian mining company's chief executive said Thursday.

Barrick CEO Jamie Sokalsky said the Pascua-Lama project straddling the Chile-Argentina border will cost up to 60 percent more than previously estimated, raising the cost of the mine to as much as $8 billion, and that the first gold won't be produced until mid-2014.