Australian engineering group Worley says it has won new contracts to provide BHP with study and engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) services for expansion projects at its South Australia copper operations.
BHP Copper South Australia asset president Anna Wiley told last week’s Copper to the World conference in Adelaide the company had “well over A$2 billion in major project developments currently underway as we expand the province and support future growth”.
The major’s CSA operations produced 321,000 tonnes of copper at US32c/lb unit cost in FY2026, contributing US$3.2 billion of EBITDA as copper ($18.2 billion total) topped iron ore and other big BHP earnings generators for the first time.
“Momentum is building as we look to options to further accelerate the first phase of our growth ambition, which is to grow copper production first to more than 500,000t a year by the mid-2030s,” Wiley said.
“This would be about 770,000tpa in copper-equivalent terms when you include uranium, gold and silver.
“Longer term we see a pathway towards 650,000t of copper, or around a million tonnes of copper-equivalent each year. It is aspirational, but it is achievable.”
Worley said it would deliver study and EPCM services concurrently “across multiple project phases for potential block cave development and associated infrastructure at Olympic Dam and the potential expansion of Carrapateena’s underground operations and processing infrastructure”.
It said initial EPCM services had commenced for early-phase activities.
“This contract reflects Worley’s continued focus on energy transition materials, such as copper, as a priority growth market,” Worley CEO Chris Ashton said. “We are pleased to provide ongoing support for BHP’s ambition to grow its copper production in South Australia.
“Our team brings experience in underground mining, processing and major project delivery and we look forward to working with BHP and the local businesses in South Australia to progress these mega projects.”
