The projects will add 4.9 million tonnes of annual mine capacity (100% basis) through development of the Daunia operation and a new mining area at Broadmeadow.
In addition, 11 million tonnes of annual port capacity (100% basis) will be developed at the Hay Point coal terminal.
The total investment for this purpose is $5bn, of which BHP Billiton’s share is about $2.5bn.
About $1.6bn is for development of the new Daunia mine, $900m is to extend the life of the Broadmeadow mine by a further 21 years, and about $2.5bn is for the third stage expansion of the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance’s wholly owned Hay Point coal terminal.
BHP Billiton metallurgical coal president Hubie Dalsen said that the company has a deep pipeline of expansion projects to further develop its large reserves of high quality metallurgical coal.
The Daunia mine project, the Hay Point coal terminal and the Broadmeadow mine are operations of the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance, a 50:50 joint venture between BHP Billiton and Mitsubishi Development.
