Key BHP supply chains remain on track despite heavy weather
April 17, 2013
Key BHP Billiton supply chains remain on track despite heavy weather, a BHP production report shows.
Flood mitigation infrastructure allowed BHP’s coking coal supply chain in Queensland to rapidly recover from heavy weather in March, the production report for the nine months ended March 31 shows.
The report
says the recently installed flood mitigation infrastructure allowed BHP’s Queensland coal supply chain to return to full capacity by the end of March.
BHP reports production of almost
nine million tonnes of coal for the March 2013 quarter, up 22 percent on the March 2012 quarter.
Meanwhile, BHP’s Western Australian iron ore (WAIO) division reports record production for the nine-months to March despite cyclonic weather.
BHP produced more than 40 million tonnes of iron ore for the March 2013 quarter, up six percent on the previous corresponding period.
The company believes it will reach its production guidance of 183 million tonnes for the year to June 30.
BHP reports its Jimblebar mine expansion is also on track for production in March 2014 to match a port capacity of 220 million tonnes per year.
“The progressive debottlenecking of the supply chain is expected to underpin substantial low cost, longer-term growth in our WAIO business,” the report says.
However, bad weather in New South Wales in March did negatively affect thermal coal production, which was down 10 percent on the March 2012 quarter.
BHP’s petroleum division also produced less than
it did
in the March quarter and the
December quarter of 2012.
But the division still expects
to deliver 240 million barrels of oil equivalent this year.