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BHP Bhp Group Limited

2,275.00
18.00 (0.80%)
28 Mar 2024 - Closed
Delayed by 15 minutes
Share Name Share Symbol Market Type Share ISIN Share Description
Bhp Group Limited LSE:BHP London Ordinary Share AU000000BHP4 ORD NPV (DI)
  Price Change % Change Share Price Bid Price Offer Price High Price Low Price Open Price Shares Traded Last Trade
  18.00 0.80% 2,275.00 2,278.00 2,278.50 2,286.50 2,264.50 2,286.00 896,426 16:35:26
Industry Sector Turnover Profit EPS - Basic PE Ratio Market Cap
Crude Petroleum & Natural Gs 54.19B 12.92B 2.5513 17.39 224.66B
Bhp Group Limited is listed in the Crude Petroleum & Natural Gs sector of the London Stock Exchange with ticker BHP. The last closing price for Bhp was 2,257p. Over the last year, Bhp shares have traded in a share price range of 2,157.00p to 2,707.00p.

Bhp currently has 5,064,408,782 shares in issue. The market capitalisation of Bhp is £224.66 billion. Bhp has a price to earnings ratio (PE ratio) of 17.39.

Bhp Share Discussion Threads

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DateSubjectAuthorDiscuss
18/8/2019
06:09
the motelz fool

Why This Miner Is Excited About Copper
Copper prices are down, but Teck is still looking forward to completing a big investment in the space.
Reuben Gregg Brewer
Reuben Gregg Brewer
(TMFReubenGBrewer)
Aug 17, 2019 at 6:03PM

Teck Resources (NYSE:TECK) is a diversified Canadian miner that recently wrapped up a big oil investment. With that project now complete, the miner has started to mend its balance sheet and it is looking to its next big investment, this time in the copper space. Copper prices are weak right now, but Teck's management is still excited about this multibillion-dollar project. Here's what you need to know.
Thinking long term

Teck's investment in the Fort Hills oil sands project was green-lighted in late 2013. Roughly eight months later, oil prices had fallen into a deep bear market, taking the price of the commodity from over $100 per barrel to the $30 range. It was a devastating blow to the oil industry, with some of the weaker names in the space seeking out bankruptcy protections.
A mine tunnel with lights on in the distance

Image source: Getty Images.

But Teck, which is partnered with Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) and France's Total (NYSE:TOT) on the Fort Hills project, didn't waver in its commitment. That remained true even after Total reduced its stake, selling a portion of its investment to Suncor in late 2015. Teck held firm, owning 20%. As the project was starting to near completion, Total was again looking to trim its exposure, only this time, both Suncor and Teck were willing buyers. Teck now owns roughly 21% of the project.

This commitment is notable because it wasn't just oil that had fallen into a bear market; the entire commodity market was weak while Fort Hills was being built. That led to a lot of red ink at Teck as its steelmaking coal, copper, and zinc mines were facing price headwinds. There were also material concerns about the miner's leverage. It would have been easier, perhaps, for Teck to cut and run, selling out to Suncor like Total had and using the cash to pay down debt.

But Teck didn't do that, and now the project is up and running...and contributing to the top and bottom lines. Oil prices, meanwhile, are well off the lows seen during the deep downturn that started in mid-2014. To be fair, oil prices remain volatile, but that's partly the point, since investing in long-lived assets requires a long-term commitment given that commodity prices wax and wane over time. All in, the Fort Hills investment has worked out pretty well, adding a fourth major commodity to Teck's mix and contributing positively to EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) in the first and second quarters of 2019 despite volatile oil prices.
What's next?

This brings Teck to its next big investment, a 60% stake in the QB2 copper mine development project in northern Chile. To be fair, that stake was around 90% at one point, but it sold a portion of its position to Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. in late 2018 to raise cash for the project. That move helped to reduce the amount of capital Teck would need to contribute to QB2 and still left it with a huge ownership position. This was a balance sheet-friendly move investors should appreciate.

The problem with QB2 right now, though, is that copper prices have been falling because of concerns about global economic growth. Copper is an industrial metal, with demand and prices largely following along with economic cycles. So investing in a big new copper mine today could easily be seen as a concerning choice.

However, as the Fort Hills project shows, Teck thinks long term. For starters, the miner explains that QB2 is a high-quality mine with a long reserve life. It is also expected to have relatively low operating costs. So it is the type of mine that Teck would like to own, assuming it lives up to expectations once it is completed. In fact, Teck expects to see unlevered returns of 14% to 18% on this investment (levered returns could be as high as 40%). And it also has expansion opportunities, with the prospects for a QB3 mine already being explored.

But what about those pesky copper prices? There's even some good news on that front. Yes, copper prices are weak today, but Teck's long-term outlook calls for demand increasing by at least 1.5% a year through 2024. There are currently enough projects in the works around the world to meet that level of demand growth. However, if demand exceeds that, there could be notable supply shortfalls. The company's high-end estimate for demand suggests a 3.1 million metric ton gap between supply and demand. Now add in the fact that currently weak copper prices could lead to an investment pullback within the space (though Teck shows no signs of slowing down), and shortfalls look even more likely.

In other words, Teck's project may seem questionable if you look at the current copper market, but if you take a longer-term view of things, it looks like a good bet.
Shifting gears again

Teck's Fort Hills commitment allowed it to successfully expand into a fourth major commodity despite the concerns about oil as it was being built. The QB2 project that's currently in the works will increase the company's exposure to copper and, thus, reduce its reliance on steel making coal to create a more diversified company overall. Although copper prices are weak today, QB2 looks like a good project, and the long-term benefits to Teck are worthwhile. Add in the supply/demand outlook, and investors willing to think long term, along with Teck's management team, should like the outlook for this big copper dig.

adrian j boris
16/8/2019
15:50
Iron Ore 93.61 USD -0.15(-0.16%)
Gold COMEX 1,520.00 -0.73%
Silver COMEX 17.09 -0.72%
Platinum NYMEX 845.70 +0.44%
Copper COMEX 2.59 -0.19%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 58.76 +0.91%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.52 +0.90%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.18 -2.59%
(WTI) 54.63 USD -0.18%


Rio Tinto
4,006 -0.50%

Bhp
1,754.4 -1.03%


Anglo American
1,697.6 +0.08%

Glencore
224.85 +1.22%

waldron
15/8/2019
15:41
Iron Ore 93.76 USD -1.95(-2.08%)
Gold COMEX 1,527.10 -0.05%
Silver COMEX 17.19 -0.55%
Platinum NYMEX 841.10 -0.81%
Copper COMEX 2.59 +0.02%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 58.28 -2.02%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.51 -1.81%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.25 +4.64%
(WTI) 54.54 USD -0.75%

Rio Tinto
4,020.5 -1.01%


Bhp
1,768.2 -0.82%


Anglo American
1,696.2 -5.19%


Glencore
222.1 -3.64%

waldron
15/8/2019
14:05
www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/900833/glencore-downgraded-by-jp-morgan-as-recession-fears-rise-900833.html
sarkasm
14/8/2019
16:19
Well we'll get more of an insight into future prospects on Tuesday when the results come out, but I rather doubt that BHP will be able to tell us any more than we can glean already from the chaotic global situation that we daily hear about.

Personally, I don't want to be entirely out of the market; there's always the chance that China and the US might pull something out of the hat. China does seriously not want dissent added to the HK situation, and neither does Trump want to approach elections with a faltering economy. But maybe things have gone too far to avoid at least a near-term recession.

I dunno, just a simple sailor me.

poikka
14/8/2019
15:56
Iron Ore 95.71 USD 0.60(0.63%)
Gold COMEX 1,526.70 +0.83%
Silver COMEX 17.21 +1.32%
Platinum NYMEX 850.50 -1.07%
Copper COMEX 2.60 -1.27%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 58.76 -4.14%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.53 -3.93%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.15 -0.46%
(WTI) 54.55 USD -3.96%

Rio Tinto
4,061.5 -1.36%

Bhp
1,782.8 -1.83%

Anglo American
1,789 -4.02%

Glencore
230.5 -2.39%

waldron
14/8/2019
12:02
BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP):

Recent weakness in the iron ore price and trade war concerns have weighed heavily on this mining giant’s shares. So much so, they are currently trading almost 13% lower than their 52-week high. I think this could be a buying opportunity for investors that are looking for a little exposure to the resources sector. This is because I believe BHP is well-placed to deliver bumper free cash flows in FY 2020 thanks to its low cost operations and favourable commodity prices. Furthermore, I suspect that the majority of its free cash flow will find its way back to shareholders in the form of dividends, which makes its shares even more attractive given the low interest rate environment we are living in.

loganair
13/8/2019
15:56
Iron Ore95.11USD 0.10(0.11%)
Gold COMEX 1,510.80 -0.42%
Silver COMEX 16.95 -0.71%
Platinum NYMEX 857.20 -0.75%
Copper COMEX 2.62 +1.51%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 60.97 +4.10%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.59 +4.43%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.18 +2.83%
(WTI) 57.08 USD+4.01%



Rio Tinto
4,117.5 +1.91%


Bhp
1,816 +1.03%

Anglo American
1,864 +2.56%

Glencore
236.15 +2.30%

waldron
12/8/2019
15:54
Iron Ore 95.01USD 1.40(1.47%)
Gold COMEX 1,517.50 +0.60%
Silver COMEX 17.06 +0.76%
Platinum NYMEX 861.90 -0.22%
Copper COMEX 2.58 -0.31%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 58.44 -0.15%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.51 -0.42%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.13 -0.23%
(WTI) 54.34 USD +0.20%

Rio Tinto
4,040.5 -0.38%

Bhp
1,797.4 -0.26%


Anglo American
1,817.4 -1.36%


Glencore
230.85 -0.13%

waldron
12/8/2019
05:38
FORBES



Gold Is Hot But Nickel Is Hotter As Demand Grows For Batteries In Electric Vehicles
Tim Treadgold
Tim Treadgold
Contributor
Asia

Gold is hot but there's another metal which is hotter, nickel.

Up 30% over the past two months nickel has delivered more than double the performance of gold which is up 13% over the same time, and the gap could get a lot wider as the supply of nickel stagnates and demand accelerates.

The driving force behind the recent awakening of gold is well-understood and can be summed up as a flight to safety as the China v U.S. trade war slows global growth and values of conventional, or fiat currencies, are debased by governments resorting to quantitative easing or other forms of creating money.
Bags filled with nickel briquette and nickel powder sit in a warehouse at the BHP Group Ltd. Kwinana Nickel Refinery in Kwinana, Western Australia, Australia, on Friday, Aug. 2, 2019. The world's biggest miners, including BHP Group and Glencore Plc, are finally firm believers in the electric vehicle battery revolution -- what they don't agree on is which metals will deliver the best long-term exposure to the developing global market. Photographer: Philip Gostelow/Bloomberg

Bags filled with nickel briquette and nickel powder sit in a warehouse at the BHP Group Ltd. Kwinana Nickel Refinery in Kwinana, Western Australia, Australia, on Friday, Aug. 2, 2019. The world's biggest miners, including BHP Group and Glencore Plc, are finally firm believers in the electric vehicle battery revolution -- what they don't agree on is which metals will deliver the best long-term exposure to the developing global market. Photographer: Philip Gostelow/Bloomberg © 2019 Bloomberg Finance LP

Nickel's drivers are different and far easier to understand and boil down to a simple case of supply exceeding demand which, in past nickel booms, was essentially a case of mines failing to keep up with the requirements of steel mills making stainless steel, a material which has traditional consumed close to 80% of the world's nickel.

Demand Growing For Nickel In Batteries

Stainless steel remains the primary market for nickel but there's a faster-growing market which until a few years ago was insignificant; lithium-ion batteries.
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A standard source of power in small appliances such as cell-phones with their nickel-cadmium (NiCd) batteries, or nickel-metal hydride (NiMh) rechargeable batteries the big game today is in the battery packs which power electric cars such as the Tesla, Prius and Leaf.

From being a metal easily described as a one-trick pony thanks to its dominant end-use in stainless steel, nickel has suddenly become a two-trick pony, and if electric cars take off as predicted then a shortage in future years is possible.

What caused nickel to run from around $5.40 a pound two months ago to $7.09/lb at the end of last week (and a high on Friday of $7.22/lb) was a combination of strong demand from Chinese stainless steel mills and speculation that a major source of the metal could be cut off sooner than expected.

The source under threat is unprocessed nickel ore from Indonesia which is shipped to China for use in steel mills as a material called Nickel Pig Iron (NPI). Indonesia, and other countries which produce NPI dislike the material because it does not require any value-adding in the home market.

Previous bans on NPI have crimped the industry only for it to return. But the next ban is expected to be permanent and while Indonesia has said it will not be applied until the year 2022 it could happen sooner, just as battery makers seek supplies of nickel to meet electric-car demand.
A crystalliser, used in the process of manufacturing nickel sulphate hexahydrate, stands at the BHP Group Ltd. Kwinana Nickel Refinery in Kwinana, Western Australia, Australia. Photographer: Philip Gostelow/Bloomberg

A crystalliser, used in the process of manufacturing nickel sulphate hexahydrate, stands at the BHP Group Ltd. Kwinana Nickel Refinery in Kwinana, Western Australia, Australia. Photographer: Philip Gostelow/Bloomberg © 2019 Bloomberg Finance LP

ANZ, an Australian bank, warned two weeks ago that falling stockpiles of nickel metal were a warning of a squeeze developing. Stockpiles in warehouses managed by the London Metal Exchange (LME) have been falling for the past four years, with an accelerating decline over the past two, a time when reserve inventories dropped by 43% from around 250,000 tons to 142,000t.

"Nickel inventories have declined steadily since early 2018, as the persistent market deficit takes a toll," ANZ said.

"Some analysts suggest stockpiling by electric vehicle manufacturers is behind the depletion. Whether this is the case or not, we see the tight market meaning further inventory drawdowns are likely.

Talk Of Panic Buying

"Current LME stockpiles would meet less than two months of supply --- so panic buying is a likely outcome."

It is highly unusual for a bank like ANZ to use an expression as emotive as panic buying but it was used largely because of concern that speculators had become active in the nickel market ahead of Indonesia's reintroduction of a ban on NPI.

Pure-play Australian nickel mining companies are enjoying sharp share price rises as the nickel price moves up. Western Areas has risen by 25% over the past month and Mincor, which has just re-signed a supply agreement with BHP, a major producer of the nickel sulphate which battery makers prefer, is up 28%.

If there is a squeeze developing on nickel supplies as a major new market develops for the metal the price could go much higher than its current $7.09/lb.

Back in 2011 when a supply shortage developed the nickel price hit $22/lb, before falling rapidly as steel mills found substitutes for nickel in their stainless steel, including manganese.

No-one is talking about a nickel boom as powerful as that in 2011 but nickel has a long track record of extreme moves, up and down.


Tim Treadgold
Tim Treadgold

I studied geology in the 1960s and worked for a small mining company before getting a start in journalism during the 1969 nickel boom.

waldron
09/8/2019
16:00
Iron Ore 93.61 USD -3.76(-4.02%)
Gold COMEX 1,514.50 +0.33%
Silver COMEX 16.99 +0.32%
Platinum NYMEX 867.50 +0.00%
Copper COMEX 2.59 -0.61%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 58.65 +2.21%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.52 +2.07%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.15 +0.05%
(WTI) 54.41 USD +2.99%

Rio Tinto
4,056 -2.45%


Bhp
1,802 -1.80%


Anglo American
1,842.4 -1.18%


Glencore
231.15 -1.97%

waldron
09/8/2019
10:50
The bullish and bearish cases for oil prices
By: John Stepek
09/08/2019
Shale oil jacks in North Dakota © ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images
The outlook is not a pretty one for oil producers

This article is taken from our FREE daily investment email Money Morning.

Every day, MoneyWeek's executive editor John Stepek and guest contributors explain how current economic and political developments are affecting the markets and your wealth, and give you pointers on how you can profit.

Sign up free here.

Quick note to MoneyWeek subscribers: if you haven’t booked your ticket for the MoneyWeek Wealth Summit yet, then have a look in this week’s issue of the magazine when it hits your doorstep – there’s a special subscriber discount offer. We’ll also be announcing more guests very shortly – keep an eye out for that.

Equity and bond markets have calmed down a little after the drama of earlier in the week.

There’s not a hugely obvious reason for this beyond the fact that markets can only sustain so much panic before they get tired.

So let’s quickly turn to another key asset that took a hammering this week.

Oil.
Oil is in a bear market

The price of oil has been hit hard in recent weeks. At the tail end of last month, Brent crude (the European benchmark) was trading at over $64 per barrel. As of this morning, it’s trading at around $57 a barrel. The drop was even harder for WTI, the US benchmark. It’s fallen from around $58 a barrel to below $53 this morning.

What’s going on? I suppose it’s pretty obvious. Recession and slowing growth mean a drop in demand for oil (or at least a drop in the rate of demand growth). If demand weakens more rapidly than supply, then prices fall.

Of course, it’s never that simple with oil, because there’s a lot of speculation and not entirely reliable data thrown into the mix. Not to mention things like unexpected production cuts, or flaring tension in the Middle East (which never goes away, but matters more some days than others).

But overall, the outlook is not a pretty one for oil producers, it seems. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has just come out with a report that suggests that oil demand growth in the first five months of 2019 was the worst it’s seen since the same period in 2008. Now we all know what happened in 2008, so that’s not a soothing statistic.

What’s it down to? Trade tension and slowing growth. The IEA previously reckoned that oil demand in 2019 would grow by 1.5 million barrels of oil a day. It now reckons growth will come in at just 1.1 million barrels per day. That’s nearly a third off – and it’s still one of the more optimistic views out there.

Meanwhile, supply has more than kept up. Oil cartel Opec has cut production by two million barrels a day over the past year, says the Financial Times. But growth elsewhere – mostly from US shale oil – is set to almost entirely offset that this year.

As a result, oil is now firmly in a bear market, with Brent down by more than 20% since April, notes the Financial Times.
I hate to say it, but oil could go either way

So what could happen next? The problem with oil right now is that you can make lots of fundamental arguments for big moves in either direction. It’s not blatantly cheap or hated as it was back when it dived to $30-odd a barrel in 2016. Yet it’s not obviously expensive either.

On the one hand, if we’re heading into a recession and a slowdown – which seems very possible – then oil could go lower from here. China is particularly important. As Gregor Macdonald in The Gregor Letter points out, Chinese vehicle demand has dropped in the first five months of this year, and so has fuel consumption. Meanwhile “US gasoline demand… is putting in a third year of no-growth.”

There’s also the issue of shale production. Opec can cut as much as it wants, but much of the shale production is now in the hands of the oil majors, who have a better ability to sustain losses in shale production because they can offset it elsewhere.

On the other, if we get a surprise on the trade front, or we get central banks loosening monetary policy in a highly aggressive manner (yes, they look as though they’re struggling right now, but every single other time investors have thought that since 2008, they’ve pulled rabbits from hats) then maybe the gloom is overdone.

My colleague Dominic is bullish on oil for the long run. I’m ambivalent, I have to say. I struggle to have a high conviction view on oil here. It has a habit of making big sudden moves which is one very good reason to be circumspect about staking money on what it might do next.

But at the same time, I don’t see a compelling reason to ditch your exposure to it (particularly as Dominic’s favourite play is BHP Billiton, which also has exposure to lots of other commodities).

I realise that’s not very satisfying, but I have to be honest about it. It’s one of those ones that could go either way. In the longer run, I think that having more oil in the hands of more reliable trading partners, combined with a rise in electrification, could be an absolutely brilliant boon to the global economy.

But right now, the slide in prices is being driven more by fear of a slowdown – so an ongoing collapse would probably be a warning sign. We’ll have more on oil in tomorrow’s Money Morning where we run through our “charts that matter”.

ariane
08/8/2019
15:52
Iron Ore 97.37 USD 0.81(0.83%)
Gold COMEX 1,508.30 -0.74%
Silver COMEX 16.96 -1.40%
Platinum NYMEX 866.80 -0.48%
Copper COMEX 2.61 +1.46%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 57.51 +2.28%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.50 +1.92%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.16 +3.00%
WTI) 52.73 USD +0.84%



Rio Tinto
4,147 -1.14%


Bhp
1,830.4 +4.00%


Anglo American
1,864 +4.03%


Glencore
236.5 +3.14%

waldron
07/8/2019
16:00
Iron Ore 96.56 USD -2.95(-3.06%)
Gold COMEX 1,520.50 +2.45%
Silver COMEX 17.11 +4.01%
Platinum NYMEX 868.00 +1.73%
Copper COMEX 2.56 +0.18%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 56.32 -4.45%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.47 -4.20%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.11 -0.56%
(WTI) 50.77 USD -4.91%

Rio Tinto
4,195 -0.77%


Bhp
1,760 -1.06%


Anglo American
1,791.8 -0.92%


Glencore
226.25 -2.20%

waldron
06/8/2019
15:52
Iron Ore 99.51 USD -0.83(-0.83%)
Gold COMEX 1,485.40 +0.60%
Silver COMEX 16.47 +0.44%
Platinum NYMEX 850.30 -0.89%
Copper COMEX 2.55 +0.41%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 59.71 -0.17%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.55 -0.96%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.13 +2.35%
(WTI) 54.55 USD +0.78%



Rio Tinto
4,235 -1.28%

Bhp
1,777.2 -1.51%

Anglo American
1,808.2 -0.65%


Glencore
230.1 -2.09%

waldron
06/8/2019
13:16
BHP has been increasing its investment in Copper mining over the past couple of years.
loganair
05/8/2019
16:05
Iron Ore 100.34USD -6.17(-6.15%)
Gold COMEX 1,472.60 +1.04%
Silver COMEX 16.35 +0.46%
Platinum NYMEX 854.80 +0.21%
Copper COMEX 2.55 -0.72%
Brent Crude Oil NYMEX 60.61 -2.07%
Gasoline NYMEX 1.58 -2.45%
Natural Gas NYMEX 2.09 -3.02%
(WTI) 55.35 USD +0.04%


Rio Tinto
4,290 -2.20%


Bhp
1,804.4 -2.15%


Anglo American
1,820 -3.40%

Glencore
235 -2.99%

waldron
03/8/2019
22:21
I disagree that the Nickel division to be sold as Nickel is the future where coal and oil is the mature past.

I've seen reported that around 2030 will see peak oil demand. Vehicles take around 30% of all oil produced, in the United States it is around 70% of all the oil they use is for vehicles, and by around 2050 there will be no more internal combustion vehicles being manufactured anywhere in the world.

Even the shipping industry by 2022 will start building large non-oil powered ships and by 2050 most big ships will be non-oil powered.

I've seen reported that by 2050 the amount of oil consumed will be down to around 2005 levels of use.

BHP having been investing in Copper mines, so why not invest in Nickel mines as well and become one of the major players in Nickel mining.

loganair
03/8/2019
22:06
ALL ABOARD THE NICKEL TRAIN:

Nickel's medium term outlook is bright, driven by an expected boom in electric vehicle sales and a move towards nickel-rich batteries that can store more energy, giving a longer drive between charges.

Demand for nickel from the battery supply chain is expected to double to 400,000 tonnes by 2025 from 200,000 tonnes this year, according to Wood Mackenzie, which is around 8 percent of the current global nickel market.

In the short-term, however, an end to some of China's EV subsidies in June has dampened demand throughout the EV battery supply chain, particularly for lithium.

BHP's new production, which is equivalent to 22,000 tonnes of nickel or 100,000 tonnes of sulphate, will add around 11 percent to the market just as other sulphate producers also start or raise output, including Indonesia's QMB New Energy Materials, Papua New Guinea's Ramu and Finland's Terrafirme.

First Quantum said this week it would restart its Western Australian Ravensthorpe nickel operations by Q1 2020 to produce a mixed hydroxide product (MHP) that is cheaper to turn into battery chemicals.

BHP's Haegel, says the miner will aim to match supply with demand and would flexible in what was "a very new, a very young market".

The miner was also confident it tap into its expertise in bulk products.

"We think that integration is a competitive advantage, we think scale is a competitive advantage," Haegel told a briefing at the plant on Friday.

QUALITY QUESTIONS:

As battery makers move towards higher nickel-content cathodes, they look for extremely high purity metal. One seller of nickel sulphate, based in Asia, said that BHP's existing metal products were not first choice for his customers because they took longer to process.

"BHP Nickel briquette or powder is not a first purchase option for the nickel sulphate producer in Northeast Asia... It takes more time to solvent (which leads to) less productivity and higher cost," he said.

Haegel acknowledged that BHP had received similar feedback that may be related to the density of BHP's briquettes.

"That hasn't stopped people buying briquettes � sales continue to grow," he said.

"All I can point to is that we have had pretty exponential growth in our sales and our customers keep buying our product."

Nickel West currently contributes just a fraction to BHP's profits, accounting for just $42 million of underlying earnings in the December half year, compared with $3.5 billion from iron ore.

Analysts and investors said given its size and focus, the division could be a better fit for another owner if BHP chooses to revisit a sale.

"By global standards, it's a very material asset in the nickel sulphide world," said Brenton Saunders of Sydney-based investment manager Pendal Group. "In the right hands, with the right cost structure it could be a great asset."

loganair
03/8/2019
21:54
More on what BHP was saying about Nickel West:


Speaking at the company's nickel refinery in Kwinana on Friday Nickel West asset president Eddy Haegel said the company reviewed battery materials such as lithium and cobalt but they weren't as attractive as nickel.

The move by the world's biggest bulk miner - best known for iron ore and coal - underscores its efforts to position itself for a decarbonised world, which already relies on copper, another of its core commodities.

"I think it would come as no great surprise that we didn't think that [cobalt] was attractive ... because 70 per cent of it comes out of Democratic Republic of Congo and we're not in a hurry to go and invest into DRC," he said.

"In the case of lithium, there's a lot of lithium in the world, it's a very widely available mineral.

"There will be periods of time when supply and demand don't naturally match but we anticipate that there will be no sustainable premium in the lithium sector.

"Whereas we think that's not the case with nickel.

"We think that in the medium to longer term that there will be a margin that will be sticky for nickel, so we think that's an attractive commodity."

The sale or shutdown of Nickel West has been on the cards for nearly a decade but in May its future seemed secure within BHP after chief executive Andrew Mackenzie indicated it was a valuable asset with high growth potential.

In 2015 none of Nickel West's product went to the battery sector, now those customers gobble up 80 per cent of its output.

Nickel West is hedging its success on nickel sulphate, a crystalised version of nickel favoured by battery makers.

It is currently building a 100,000 tonnes per annum nickel sulphate plant in Kwinana, when it starts production next year it will be one of the biggest in the world.

The original cost of the plant was $62 million but Mr Haegel confirmed it was tracking above that.

He would not reveal how much the plant will cost now.

Nickel West is a major partner of the $135 million battery materials research centre based in Perth.

Mr Haegal said they would probably provide nickel sulphate to researchers for free so they can test how capable Australia is of making high value battery prescursor materials.

"We're really excited about the work that will get conducted in that space," he said.

But analysts and industry experts say it faces challenges, not least moving BHP from a high volume, low cost producer of bulk commodities to a producer of top quality chemicals demanded by battery makers, and worries about short-term demand.

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