5Q: Chuck Jeannes, CEO of Goldcorp

Goldcorp boss Chuck Jeannes usually draws a line between work and play, but that division recently became virtually nonexistent. In the days and weeks leading up to Jan. 13 -- when the Vancouver-based miner announced a $2.6-billion hostile bid for rival Osisko Mining Corp -- Jeannes's work days grew longer and longer.

Prepping for the bid itself and the ensuing market reaction is surely no easy task. That there is even a bid happening now makes the event especially enticing for the broader gold mining sector, which was hit hard last year when gold prices plummeted nearly 30 per cent.

The big prize is Osisko's Canadian Malartic mine, which is located in northwestern Quebec with an estimated 10 million ounces of gold reserves, an overall acquisition Goldcorp says would improve its portfolio, while offering Osisko shareholders "operational improvements" and "synergies" through Goldcorp's existing investments in Quebec and Ontario.

Last week (Jan. 20), Osisko urged its shareholders to reject the "opportunistic hostile bid" because it is financially inadequate. (Goldcorp's cash and stock bid is $5.95 a share. Osisko's chief executive Sean Roosen told BNN last week the right price for the company is around $10-$12 a share).

But even as the Goldcorp-Osisko story captivates the market, mergers and acquisitions activity is just one aspect of what's shaping up to be another challenging year for gold miners.

Osisko has urged its shareholders to reject your bid. What's your response?

Osisko put out a press release earlier last week. All I can say is we continue to believe that this is a very attractive bid to both Osisko and Goldcorp shareholders and we'll have more to say when they formally respond with their directors' circular.

You've tried to buy Osisko for five years?

It's been frustrating. It's something we'd been at for a long time and if somebody doesn't want to engage and even talk to you then it's hard to accomplish anything.

There is speculation you'll have to sweeten the offer. How high will you go?

I'm not able to even answer that question because at this point we've made a bid and we're waiting for Osisko's response. We think it's a fair and compelling opportunity for Osisko shareholders for all the reasons we described in our initial filing. We'll wait to see what they say.

Turning to gold prices, what's your outlook for 2014?

I expect to see us stumble along on the gold price for the next six to 18 months. Until the U.S. gets through its whole tapering discussion that's going to have an inordinate effect on gold. Gold is not going to move substantially higher until that is resolved.

What's your range?

We're pretty much finding a natural bottom now because we've seen very strong physical demand at these levels. I don't usually give numbers, but I think we could easily drop down into the US$1,100s, but we won't stay there long because of the physical demand, but I'm not expecting us to jump much above $1,300 for the next year.

Physical demand?

The big trend that has exploded over the gold scene in the last year has been Asian demand. As the Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, others, as those economies grow and as more middle class consumers are created, they're buying gold. That is just a very positive long term demand fundamental for our product.

What about investment demand?

That's what has suffered as the U.S. and other economies have strengthened without inflation. That's the big question mark: when will the tremendous influx of money supply into the system from, not just the U.S. Fed, but reserve banks around the world, when will that start sparking an inflationary response? It has to happen at some point.

Will you remain focused on gold? What about diversifying?

We are focused on being the best gold company we can so our focus remains on gold.

Turning to the Canadian dollar, where do you expect it to trade in 2014?

I don't really have a prediction for you. I don't expect to see it go dramatically further down relative to the U.S. dollar. Of course, every cent it moves is a benefit to us because we are the largest gold producer in Canada and all of our costs in Canada are in Canadian dollars. So it benefits us when the Canadian dollar drops in value.

What are the big trends this year? Is it all doom and gloom?

No, I don't think so at all. One of the things we've learned in this downturn is that we need to be more financially disciplined and more focused on returns on our shareholders' capital. I see that happening. Our industry is going to be stronger and more effective going forward. That means we'll attract investors again. We lost a lot of share value as an industry over the last couple of years.

Any others?

It's a bit self-serving, but I think we're going to see more discipline in the M&A world because the world is different than it was five or 10 years ago. Our investors are expecting us to chase value, not ounces.

What's your work day like?

I show up at around 6:30 a.m. and I generally leave at 6:30 p.m. I put in a little time after dinner, going through e-mails and things I didn't get to during the day. I usually put in some time on the weekend.

If you could draw a pie chart of your life ahead of the Jan. 13 news, how much is work and play?

I'm pretty good at working hard while I'm working, but also taking opportunities to get away from it and go jump on the skill hill or do something else I find enjoyable. Certainly leading up to this bid, the pie chart was slanted much more toward work than play.

What do you do to de-stress?

I have a lot of hobbies. I love to ski. I love to fish and hunt and golf. I have a ranch north of Reno, which is probably my favourite place to go de-stress. There's no cell service, no e-mail. It's very remote. It's a great place to go and get away from work.

*This interview has been edited and condensed.