Australia's Ramelius and Spartan ink $2.7 billion gold merger

March 17 (Reuters) - Australian gold miners Ramelius Resources RMS.AX and Spartan Resources SPR.AX will merge to form a combined gold-producing entity with a valuation of A$4.2 billion ($2.66 billion), the companies said on Monday. ($1 = 1.5813 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) ((Rishav.Chatterjee@thomsonreuters.com;))