BHP Billiton announces record iron ore production

Published:  18 Jul at 9 AM

Miner BHP Billiton said that output of iron ore for the second three months of the year had increased by 15 per cent. Production for the year was 159 million tonnes which is a record for the firm. The second quarter growth comes even though there are concerns that China’s demand continues to weaken. The company previously said that it was concerned about the state of the global economy and falling commodity prices.

The world’s biggest mining company said operations in Western Australia had produced 40.9 million tonnes in the three months ending June compared to 35.5 million tonnes extracted during the same period a year earlier.

BHP has been pumping billions of dollars into developing operations in the Pilbara region. If it decides to go ahead with expansion plans in the area worth $20 billion, BHP could potentially double iron ore production in Western Australia after 2014.

The company has forecast that next year will see a five per cent increase in output adding that it predicted demand from its main customer China to remain strong.

Rival iron ore giants Fortescue Metals and Rio Tinto have also announced that they are increasing production. Investors will now be looking to see if the market is in a position to absorb the increase in supply.