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BHPBill approves revised project costs
BHP Billiton announced today the approval of increased capital costs for the Ravensthorpe Nickel Project to a total budget of USD2.2 billion. Lower than expected labour productivity and late delivery of some materials and equipment at Ravensthorpe means that the target date for first metal ex-Yabulu from Ravensthorpe is now first quarter calendar year 2008. President of Stainless Steel Materials Jimmy Wilson said while market conditions had led to the increased capital costs, the project was still well positioned to deliver positive results.
Construction at Ravensthorpe is now approximately 73% complete with engineering and procurement activities now finalised and offsite fabrication 97% complete. The Yabulu refinery expansion is approximately 87% complete and on schedule for mechanical completion by the end of calendar year 2006.
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BHPBill -- findings of internal review
BHP Billiton today released the report of its internal review into the matters raised in the Cole Commission of Inquiry into the UN Oil for Food Program, and in particular the payment by BHP Petroleum for a shipment of wheat delivered to Iraq in 1996. The report follows an announcement by BHP Billiton's Chief Executive Chip Goodyear on 19 January 2006 that the company would undertake a thorough review of the issues surrounding the shipment and would publicly release its findings.
Chief Executive Chip Goodyear said the release of the internal review report delivered on the company's commitment to provide a full and transparent account of the issues. "The conclusions reached by the internal review were consistent with Commissioner Cole's findings - that is that BHP and BHP Petroleum complied with Australian law and UN Sanctions. He made no adverse findings against the company. At the time BHP Billiton was first named in Commission hearings, I said we would use this opportunity to review all of the events surrounding the shipment of wheat and look at current processes and practices to ensure that we meet the highest ethical standards in all our dealings. To do so is consistent with our Charter values and a fundamental plank of our licence to operate. We will continue to improve our processes and practices even in the light of Commissioner Cole's conclusion that there is no basis for any adverse finding against the company and to that end I have adopted the recommendations from the report," Mr Goodyear said. The internal review was conducted by a Steering Group appointed by Mr Goodyear, with support from external legal advisors Freehills and consulting expertise from Deloitte.
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BHPBill responds to Cole Commission's report
BHP Billiton CEO, Chip Goodyear, today acknowledged the release of Commissioner Cole's report from the Australian government's inquiry into the UN Oil-for-Food Program. "In February, I committed to investigating all the facts and publicly releasing our findings from this review. Now that the commission has released its report, we will analyse the contents and finalise our own report as soon as possible. Until we are able to complete a thorough review of the commission's findings, we will not be able to make any further comment," he said. Mr Goodyear will host a media conference to summarise BHP Billiton's findings and answer questions in relation to the commission's report.
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BHP to sell its Optimum Coal mine
Business Report noted that BHP Billiton was considering selling its South African Optimum Coal mine after failing to reach an agreement with Eskom. According to a BHP spokesperson, the mine's life could have been extended beyond the current 10 years if Eskom had agreed to buy all of its coal. During last year, the mine produced about 6 million tons of coal for sale to Eskom, and about 5.7 million tons for export.
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BHPBill's share price falls 5.27%
BHPBill's share price fell 5.27% on 13 November 2006. Business Day noted that the fall was due to softer metal prices.
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BHPBill purchases Genghis Khan
BHPBill, with co-venturers Hess Corporation and Repsol YPF, announced today the purchase of the Genghis Khan oil and gas development from Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. The transaction includes rights for Green Canyon Blocks 652 and 608 (certain rights only) in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. The Genghis Khan field already has two wells and development infrastructure in place. The field is part of the same geological structure as the recently sanctioned Shenzi project. Gross costs for the transaction are USD1.35 billion, with the net share to BHPBill at USD594 million. The sale will close following due diligence by the purchasers, resolution of production handling agreements and other conditions, as well as any subsequent government approvals that may be necessary.
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