By Rhiannon Hoyle


Mining giant BHP Group said it produced more iron ore and copper over the past year thanks to new and acquired mines in Australia, but that it dug up less steelmaking coal amid unexpectedly heavy rains.

The world's No. 1 miner by market value forecast steady iron-ore production for the year ahead, and said it should again produce more copper and less coal.

BHP has been reshaping its business to bet on an accelerating energy transition and global population growth via investments in copper and potash, a fertilizer ingredient, in particular. It recently sought to buy Anglo American to bolster its copper business but was rebuffed by directors at its smaller rival.

"We finished the year with a strong fourth quarter, achieving several production records and we are meeting current production and unit cost guidance for all commodities," Chief Executive Mike Henry said on Wednesday. Annual iron ore production was at a record high, while the company's copper output was at its highest in more than 15 years.

The company said it produced 259.7 million metric tons of iron ore in the 12 months through June, up 1% on a year earlier. Iron ore, used to make steel, accounts for the bulk of BHP's earnings.

The miner has been ramping up production from its newest, and biggest, iron ore mine--the South Flank operation in Australia's iron-rich Pilbara region. BHP, the world's third-biggest producer of iron ore, after Rio Tinto and Vale, said the South Flank operation reached its full production capacity during the year.

BHP estimated iron-ore output in the year ahead would be 2% above or below fiscal 2024 production.

It has also been lifting its copper output, aided by last year's $6 billion takeover of Oz Minerals. The company increased annual copper production to nearly 1.9 million tons, up 9% on year, in large part because of the addition of Oz Minerals's Prominent Hill and Carrapateena mines. The operational benefits from that acquisition have been greater than anticipated, Henry said.

BHP has been producing more copper in Chile where mining at the giant Escondida operation it runs in the Atacama Desert has shifted into areas of higher-grade ore. Escondida--the world's top source of copper concentrates and cathodes, used in home appliances, power grids and cars--achieved its highest production in four years, Henry said.

BHP's copper output could rise by as much as 10% in the year ahead, the company estimated.

The miner has faced challenges from unusually wet weather, especially at its coal mines in eastern Australia. BHP is a top supplier of coal used to make steel from mines it runs there with Japan's Mitsubishi.

BHP produced 22.3 million tons of metallurgical coal during its fiscal year, down 23% on the year prior. It forecast a further fall of between 15% and 26% in production this fiscal year, but Henry said the miner has plans in place to increase output again in the next five years.

Two tropical cyclones lashed the region where BHP runs its coal mines during the year, disrupting production. The joint venture also temporarily suspended one operation in January following a worker's death.

BHP reported a 2% rise in annual nickel production, to 81,600 tons. The company said last week it will shutter its Australian nickel operations later this year due to a global glut of the metal.


Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-16-24 1936ET