NEW YORK: BHP Group has reported a bigger-than-expected drop in fourth-quarter copper production, hurt by lower production at Escondida and Pampa Norte, and also flagged an expected decline in Chilean copper production for next year.
The world’s largest listed miner produced 491.9 thousand tonnes of copper in the quarter ended June 30, slightly below the Visible Alpha estimate of 492 tonnes. This compares to 516.2 tonnes reported in the same period last year.
Production at Copper South Australia was hurt by an unexpected failure of the underground conveyor belt at Carrapateena, with the recovery process expected to result in up to eight weeks of mine production impact.
For fiscal year 2027, copper production is expected to be between 1,650 tonnes and 1,800 tonnes, below the fiscal 2026 output of 1,952.8 tonnes due to a forecast grade decline at Escondida. Quarterly iron ore output from BHP’s Western Australia operations on a 100% basis came in at 74.8 million tonnes, below the Visible Alpha consensus of 75.1 tonnes, and 77.5 tonnes produced in the same period a year ago.
Average realised prices for iron rose 3% to US$84.56 per tonne in fiscal 2026. The miner also announced the approval of US$900mil for the Ministers North iron ore project in Pilbara, with first output expected in fiscal 2029. — Reuters
