BHP Group Limited (BHP) Q2 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) Q2 2023 Earnings Conference Call February 20, 2023 6:30 PM ET

Company Participants

Mike Henry - CEO

David Lamont - CFO

Conference Call Participants

Operator

Hello and thank you for joining us to hear about BHP’s results for the December 2022 Half Year. I’m joined by our Chief Financial Officer, David Lamont.

I want to start by acknowledging the tragic loss of life of one of our team members, Jody Byrne, in our rail operations at Port Hedland, the week before last. My deepest sympathies go out to his family and friends, as well as his colleagues. We are supporting them in any way we can at this difficult time.

We have commenced our investigation, the findings of which will be implemented thoroughly. Safety is our number one priority. Nothing matters more. We have been intensely focused on eliminating fatalities from BHP but, as this terrible incident so tragically reminds us, safety requires constant vigilance and we are redoubling our efforts. We will not rest in our efforts to ensure no one gets harmed while at work at BHP.

We continued to execute our strategy during the half and maintained operational rigour in the face of challenging external circumstances. We’ve again delivered steady and reliable operating performance, supporting our ability to consistently deliver attractive shareholder returns and to increase our investment in growth. We’re also continuing to optimise our portfolio.

We’ve added to and accelerated our exposure to future facing commodities -- the minerals critical to the energy transition, including through our offer for OZ Minerals. And with our joint venture partner, we’ve started to pursue options to divest the Daunia and Blackwater mines. This will further concentrate our coal portfolio on the highest-quality metallurgical coals for steelmaking. These higher-quality coals support more efficient blast furnace operations and lower relative emissions intensity.

I’ll ask David to speak about the financials in detail shortly, but first I’d like to share some highlights from the last six months. Our teams have delivered steady and reliable operational performance. We achieved record half-year production at Western Australia Iron Ore, supported by strong performance right across the supply chain. Copper production rose, as Escondida accessed higher grade ore; the Spence concentrator continued to ramp up; and Olympic Dam extended its recent track record of operational stability. And BMA, while impacted by recent wet weather, demonstrated improvements in underlying productivity.