BHP has awarded a contract worth approximately $40 million to support the proposed expansion of its Olympic Dam copper smelter and refinery facilities in South Australia.
A joint venture between Fluor Australia and Hatch have been granted the engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contract following engagement with BHP’s major projects, procurement, commercial and Copper South Australia teams.
The contract will be executed in stages as BHP progresses towards a final investment decision on the smelter and refinery expansion, which is expected in the first half of the 2026–27 financial year (FY27).
“Fluor and Hatch are experienced global EPCM partners with significant shared experience in delivering mega projects, who will bring the right level of scale and expertise to help BHP progress its copper growth plans in South Australia,” BHP Group procurement officer Rashpal Bhatti said.
“The growth potential for Copper SA is exciting and this first stage of EPCM works will be key as we progress the proposal for an expanded copper smelter and refinery at the heart of South Australia’s growing copper province towards a final investment decision.”
Last September, BHP outlined how it plans to potentially double its copper production in South Australia over the next decade.
The Big Australian would introduce a phased approach to increase refined copper cathode production to 500,000 tonnes (t) annually by the early 2030s, with a possible boost to 650,000t by the mid-2030s. This would be a significant jump from the approximately 322,000t produced in FY24.
Phase one of the strategy would involve upgrading the existing copper smelter and refinery at Olympic Dam to a two-stage smelter and extension of refinery facilities, with a capacity to produce more than 500,000t per year.
“It is critical that we prudently manage our spending to achieve the vision that BHP shares with many others to grow copper production in South Australia, and we have worked closely with Fluor and Hatch on a contract structure that supports this,” Bhatti said.
BHP’s Copper South Australia business comprises Olympic Dam, the Carrapateena and Prominent Hill mines, and the Oak Dam deposit, the latter of which has 13 rigs currently carrying out exploration in a bid to advance its studies.
“BHP is building momentum in South Australia, and this is another step forward in our strategy to increase the production of SA’s high-quality copper resources to support the global energy transition,” BHP asset president Copper SA Anna Wiley said.
“BHP has established a world-scale copper province in South Australia and we are working at pace to progress our plans to lift production further over the coming decade.”
BHP produced approximately 71,200t across its Copper SA business during the December quarter.
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