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BHP’s Xplor looking for more copper, nickel exploration projects – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – June 8, 2023)

https://www.mining.com/

BHP Xplor, an accelerator program introduced by the world’s biggest miner in August 2022 to help grow its portfolio of what it calls forward facing commodities, will launch a second round in September, which will focus on copper and nickel-related projects exclusively, the head of the initiative said.

Sonia Scarselli, BHP Xplor’s VP, said the first cohort will be gathering in Brisbane, Australia, during the last week of June for an external showcase. The event signifies the end of the six-month program that helped them to take their ideas from concept to a more defined project.

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Federal court allows international mining giant to oppose tribes in Oak Flat lawsuit – by Debra Utacia Krol (Arizona Republic – May 31, 2023)

https://www.azcentral.com/

The U.S. District Court in Arizona granted mining giant Resolution Copper permission on Monday to join the U.S. government as a defendant in a lawsuit brought by grassroots group Apache Stronghold.

The Native organization has been fighting to prevent Resolution from building a huge copper mining operation that would obliterate Oak Flat, one of the Apaches peoples’ most sacred sites. Oak Flat, or Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, “the place where the Emory oak grows,” is also culturally important to other Southwestern tribes, and is one of Arizona’s remaining riparian zones and a popular site for recreational users.

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BHP and Microsoft collaborate on AI in copper extraction – by Ashima Sharma (Mining Technology – May 30, 2023)

https://www.mining-technology.com/

BHP Group estimates the world needs to double the copper supply in the next 30 years to keep pace with green technologies.

The BHP Group and Microsoft have collaborated to improve copper recovery from the Escondida mine in Chile’s Atacama Desert.

Producing more than one million tonnes of copper in 2022, Escondida is the world’s biggest copper mine and will use using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to improve operations. Microsoft’s Azure platform will optimise concentrator performance and retrieve better ore grades. The mine is jointly owned by BHP, Rio Tinto and Japan’s JECO.

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Top Stock Fund Wagers BHP, Rio Tinto Will Weather Iron-Ore Slump – by Georgina McKay (Bloomberg News – May 17, 2023)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — A top equities fund manager is backing BHP Group Ltd. and Rio Tinto Ltd., betting they can withstand softer iron-ore prices and will benefit as China’s reopening boosts demand for the commodity.

Australian producers are attractive as they have relatively low operating costs and high exposure to the mainland, the world’s largest consumer of the steel-making ingredient, according to David Wilson, who oversees the equivalent of $5.3 billion at Australia-focused First Sentier Wholesale Geared Share Fund. The fund has returned 10% this year, beating more than 90% of its peers.

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OPINION: Will Glencore Go from Predator to Prey in Mining M&A? – by Javier Blas (Bloomberg News – April 6, 2023)

https://www.bloomberg.com/

With its offer to buy Teck, the world’s largest commodity trader may have also hung out a “for sale” sign visible to its only potential acquirer: BHP

Teck Resources Ltd.’s rejection of Glencore Plc’s $23 billion takeover bid was hardly the end of their dealmaking story. It was closer to the end of the beginning. In the next chapter’s plot twist, the buyer could very well become a seller in a transaction that reshapes the global mining industry.

By proposing to Teck that they spin off their coal assets and sell noncore businesses, Glencore’s decisionmakers knew they were doing more than configuring a new commodities giant. Unwittingly or not, they were also putting the “for sale” sign above their own company — a placard visible to the only company that has the potential interest and means to acquire them: BHP Group Ltd.

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BHP’s secret nickel clause provides Mincor termination rights – by Peter Ker (Australian Financial Review – April 5, 2023)

https://www.afr.com/

Takeover target Mincor has confirmed its nickel supply deal with BHP contains a “change of control” clause that gives BHP the right to terminate the supply contract in certain circumstances and, by extension, trigger a default on Mincor’s debt.

Confirmation the clause exists came on page 55 of the target statement published by Mincor this week in response to a $760 million takeover bid from billionaire Andrew Forrest’s private company Wyloo Metals.

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BHP open to potash partnership with Nutrien, leaves door open to new takeover attempt – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – March 14, 2023)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

BHP Group Ltd. is open to partnering with Nutrien Ltd., and isn’t ruling out making another takeover attempt of the Canadian fertilizer giant, a senior executive with the Australian miner told The Globe and Mail. “We’re happy to partner,” Rag Udd, president minerals Americas with Melbourne-based BHP, said in an interview.

“If you take a look at the majority of our businesses, there’s some form of partnership there with other companies.” When asked whether a partnership with Nutrien meant a joint venture, a takeover of the company, or both, Mr. Udd replied, “There’s a myriad of options that could be looked at.”

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BHP inks $188m contracts with First Nations at Jansen potash project in Saskatchewan – by Staff (Mining.com – March 10, 2023)

https://www.mining.com/

BHP (NYSE: BHP, ASX: BHP) announced Friday that as construction progresses at its Jansen potash project in Saskatchewan, it has awarded three new contracts in partnership with local First Nation communities.

Covering camp management, site services and raw ore/handling foundation, the contracts include representation from the six First Nations surrounding the Jansen site, with whom BHP has opportunity agreements in place.

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BHP seeks to tighten grip on South America’s copper sector – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – March 1, 2023)

https://www.mining.com/

BHP (ASX: BHP), the world’s largest miner, is hoping to expand its investments in Argentina’s copper sector, where it already has a presence through its 9.9% stake Canada’s Filo Mining (TSX: FIL), the junior developing the Filo del Sol copper-gold-silver project straddling the border with Chile.

Company representatives met with the San Juan’s governor on Tuesday to discuss possible investments in the minerals-rich province, which is recognized a safe mining destination due to the support to mining activities by both authorities and locals.

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The world’s biggest miner is ready to plant more flags in ‘highly desirable’ Canada – by Naimul Karim (Yahoo Finance/Financial Post – February 22, 2023)

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/

A little over a year ago, Melbourne-based BHP Group Ltd., the world’s largest miner, bowed out of the highly publicized bidding war with Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest’s Wyloo Metals Pty. Ltd. for a nickel project in Ontario’s Ring of Fire region.

The tug of war between the two Australian miners over a Canadian asset included multiple bids over almost half a year before Wyloo’s $616.9-million bid in December 2021 led to the takeover of Noront Resources Ltd. — and with it the much talked about Eagle’s Nest project in northern Ontario.

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BHP brings forward Jansen Stage 2 studies – by Mariaan Webb (Mining Weekly – February 21, 2023)

https://www.miningweekly.com/

Diversified miner BHP is speeding up work at its Jansen potash mine, in Canada, as the group sees an attractive entry opportunity for supply in lower-risk jurisdictions amid increased geopolitical uncertainty.

The company, which previously bought forward first production at Jansen Stage 1 from 2027 to the end of 2026, on Tuesday confirmed that the feasibility study for Stage 2 would be completed a year earlier than previously planned.

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A Copper Mine Could Advance Green Energy but Scar Sacred Land – by Clifford Krauss (New York Times – January 27, 2023)

https://www.nytimes.com/

Tribal groups are fighting an Arizona project whose backers say increasing the supply of copper, crucial to batteries, would reduce fossil-fuel use.

SUPERIOR, Ariz. — As Wendsler Nosie finished his evening prayers sitting before a mesquite fire, a ceremonial yucca staff festooned with eagle feathers by his side, he gazed sternly toward a distant mesa where mining companies hope to extract more than a billion tons of copper.

That mine could help address climate change by helping the United States replace fossil fuels and combustion engines with renewable energy and electric cars. But to Mr. Nosie, a former chairman of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, it’s the latest insult in a bitter history.

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BHP invests in Gates and Friedland-backed firm I-Rox – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – December 12, 2022)

https://www.mining.com/

BHP (ASX: BHP) has joined billionaire Robert Friedland’s I-Pulse Inc. and Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a clean-tech venture backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, to speed up technologies that can help the mining sector save on energy.

I-Pulse and Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV)-Europe launched earlier this year a company called I-Rox, a France-based firm focused on demonstrating a pulsed-power technology said to reduce the amount of energy needed to crush rocks.

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BHP Weighs Boosting A$8.4 Billion Bid for OZ Minerals – by Thomas Biesheuvel, Dinesh Nair and Vinicy Chan (Bloomberg News – September 16, 2022)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — BHP Group Ltd. is considering raising its A$8.4 billion ($5.6 billion) offer for OZ Minerals Ltd., people familiar with the matter said, as the world’s top miner seeks to boost its exposure to metals needed for the green-energy transition.

Melbourne-based BHP may increase its A$25 per share bid for OZ Minerals as soon as this month, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private. It wasn’t immediately clear by how much BHP would increase its offer, or whether OZ Minerals would agree to any renewed proposal from BHP.

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BHP signals it is willing to walk away from bid for OZ Minerals – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – August 16, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

BHP Group Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company by market value, appears willing to walk away from its latest major takeover proposal. After the release of the miner’s quarterly earnings Tuesday, BHP chief executive Mike Henry said in a call with media that OZ Minerals Ltd. would be “nice to have” but is not a “must have.”

Earlier this month, Melbourne-based BHP proposed a US$5.8-billion takeover of its fellow Australian copper and nickel producer. While the offer was 30 per cent above OZ’s market price, it was well below its peak share price, reflecting the sharp sell-off across the mining sector over the past few months. OZ Minerals rejected the offer, calling it “highly opportunistic.”

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