Also considered when comparing companies is their market capitalization per ounce of gold equivalent (sometimes abbreviated MV-GEO, EVO if the enterprise value is used) which takes the market value and total reserves and resources for each company as well as the price of gold into consideration.
[3][4] World gold production in 2008 declined by 50 tonnes despite a strong showing in market price.
[9] In 2013, nine of the world's 14 major producing regions recorded growth in output, they are: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Indonesia, Mexico, Papua New Guinea and Russia; In 2012 only Canada, China, Ghana, Mexico, Peru and Russia produced more than the year before.
[12] South Africa's drop in output (down 10% from 2010 to 2012) is not a result of resource depletion but rather high production costs.
[21] Even though Canada lags far behind its counterparts in its amount of central bank gold reserves, Canadian companies dominate the industry.
[59] Another project in the Detour Lake area of Ontario ranks 4th among North America's deposits (up from six in July 2010).
In fact South Africa has the highest mining cash costs among all major producing regions.
It ranks them based on a number of factors, the top companies on its list aren't necessarily the biggest.
Data reflects the 12-month period ending March 2016 for companies based in the United States, Canada and Bermuda.