In line with what it calls its commitment to “future-facing commodities”, BHP’s (ASX : BHP) copper division saw a 10% increase in H1 FY25, driven by an impressive 22% production increase on the back of a 10-year production record of 644,000t Cu at the miner’s Escondida operation in northern Chile.
This “more than offset” a 9% drop in half-year production from Pampa Norte and storm-related delays at Olympic Dam that saw a 6% drop in copper production for the half-year ending December 2024.
So did its average realised price for the red metal, which rose 9% to US$3.99/lb.
BHP’s H1 FY25 operational review reported a 1% increase in iron ore production to 131Mt in line with full-year guidance buoyed by its Western Australian operations and an expected 9% increase in production from Samarco.
“Our flagship copper, iron ore and steelmaking coal assets delivered particularly strong production in the period,” BHP CEO Mike Henry said.
“WAIO shipped record half-year tonnes through the port, enabled by supply chain improvements following the completion of major debottlenecking at the port, while steelmaking coal tonnes from BMA operations were up 14%,” Henry said.
Henry says the Big Aussie’s drive into increasing South American copper production remained on target after a US$2 billion spend to acquire a foothold into Argentina’s deposits.
“We made further progress on our growth pathways in future-facing commodities. In January, we completed the formation of Vicuña Corp with Lundin Mining to advance the Filo del Sol and Josemaria projects in Argentina, which we consider to be one of the most significant global copper discoveries in decades.”
“In Canada, our Jansen Stage 1 potash project is now 63% complete, with first production scheduled for late 2026, and we continue to execute Stage 2 in parallel.
In Brasil, payback obligations for the Samarco dam failure in Brasil wrote down US$637 million as part of its A$23.7bn settlement over the 2015 disaster.
“BHP Brasil and Vale signed a comprehensive settlement agreement with the Brazilian government and public authorities for the Samarco Fundão dam failure, reflecting BHP Brasil’s commitment to support the people, communities and environment affected by the tragedy, Henry said.
“Our WA Nickel operations were safely transitioned into a period of temporary suspension, with many employees moving into roles to support this phase or within other parts of BHP.
“We are well positioned to continue strong momentum into the second half with a number of assets now expected to deliver production in the upper half of their respective ranges while maintaining tight cost control. BHP is in good shape and we have a clear pathway for growth."
BHP's stock price was down 1.56% to trade at A$39.98 per share at time of writing. It's market cap was A$203 billion.