BHP’s new top executive has a plan to prosper in a world that’s accelerating efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions – double down on the raw materials that’ve been key through its near 170-year history.
The world’s top miner, with roots in a 19th Century tin mine, plans to add more copper and nickel to meet rising demand from renewable energy and electric vehicles, and sees a continuing role for key coal mines and oil wells, according to Chief Executive Officer Mike Henry, who signaled his tenure won’t begin with any radical overhaul.
“We already produce some of the products that will be essential as the world transitions to a lower carbon economy and which will continue to prosper in a decarbonized world,” Henry, who took his post last month, told reporters Tuesday. “We do still need to create more options in future-facing commodities.”
Alongside copper and nickel, potash is regarded by BHP as another key future material and the producer is on track to seek board approval next year to spend as much as $5.7 billion on the first stage of its Jansen mine project in Canada, Henry said.