BHP sees oil and gas rebounding faster than metals, coal

Better times ahead: Iron ore being stockpiled for export at Port Hedland in Western Australia. BHP Billiton says its onshore assets are currently generating cash. – AFP

SYDNEY: BHP Billiton Ltd sees oil and gas markets rebounding faster than its mined commodities as it considers potential acquisitions and weighs as much as US$5bil in project spending.

The world’s biggest miner, which booked writedowns of US$7.2bil against its US shale unit earlier this year, said that recovering oil prices and efforts to lower costs were making investment opportunities more attractive.