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BIL 201307260001A
BHP Billiton Approves Escondida Water Supply Project
BHP BILLITON PLC
NEWS RELEASE
Release Time IMMEDIATE
Date 25 July 2013
Number 17/13
BHP BILLITON APPROVES ESCONDIDA WATER SUPPLY PROJECT
BHP Billiton today approved an investment of US$1,972 million (BHP Billiton share) to
sustain operations at Escondida in Chile, by constructing a new 2,500 litre per second
sea-water desalination facility.
The project will ensure continued water supply to Escondida, as water use increases upon
completion of the 152,000 tonne per day OGP1 copper concentrator.
Construction of the new desalination facility will commence in July 2013 and will include the
development of two pipelines, four high pressure pump stations, a reservoir at the mine site
and high voltage infrastructure to support the system. The new facility will be commissioned
in 2017.
BHP Billiton Copper President, Peter Beaven, said: “Securing a sustainable water supply in
the Atacama Desert is a major priority for all Chilean copper producers, so the approval of
the Escondida Water Supply project is a significant milestone for our business. The new
desalination facility will minimise our reliance on the region’s aquifers, which will help us to
meet our environmental commitments and enable us to achieve our long-term business
strategy.”
Escondida is located 3,100 meters above sea level, 170km South-East of the City of
Antofagasta. It is owned by BHP Billiton (57.5%), Rio Tinto (30.0%), JECO Corporation
(10.0%) and JECO 2 Ltd (2.5%). BHP Billiton operates the Escondida mine.
Further information on BHP Billiton can be found at: www.bhpbilliton.com.
Sponsor: Absa Capital (the investment banking division of Absa Bank Limited, affiliated with
Barclays).
Media Relations Investor Relations
Australia Australia
Gabrielle Notley James Agar
Tel: +61 3 9609 3830 Mobile: +61 477 325 803 Tel: +61 3 9609 2222 Mobile: +61 467 807 064
email: Gabrielle.Notley@bhpbilliton.com email: James.Agar@bhpbilliton.com
Fiona Hadley Andrew Gunn
Tel: +61 3 9609 2211 Mobile: +61 427 777 908 Tel: +61 3 9609 3575 Mobile: +61 402 087 354
email: Fiona.Hadley@bhpbilliton.com email: Andrew.Gunn@bhpbilliton.com
Eleanor Nichols United Kingdom and South Africa
Tel: +61 3 9609 2360 Mobile: +61 407 064 748
email: Eleanor.Nichols@bhpbilliton.com Tara Dines
Tel : +44 20 7802 7113 Mobile : +44 7825 342 232
United Kingdom Email : Tara.Dines@bhpbilliton.com
Ruban Yogarajah Americas
Tel: +44 20 7802 4033 Mobile: +44 7827 082 022
email: Ruban.Yogarajah@bhpbilliton.com James Agar
Tel: +61 3 9609 2222 Mobile: +61 467 807 064
Jennifer White email: James.Agar@bhpbilliton.com
Tel: +44 20 7802 7462 Mobile: +44 7827 253 764
email: Jennifer.White@bhpbilliton.com Matt Chism
Tel: +1 71 359 96158 Mobile: +1 281 782 2238
email: Matt.E.Chism@bhpbilliton.com
Americas
Jaryl Strong
Tel: +1 713 499 5548 Mobile: +1 281 222 6627
email: Jaryl.Strong@bhpbilliton.com
BHP Billiton Limited ABN 49 004 028 077 BHP Billiton Plc Registration number 3196209
Registered in Australia Registered in England and Wales
Registered Office: 180 Lonsdale Street Registered Office: Neathouse Place
Melbourne Victoria 3000 Australia London SW1V 1BH United Kingdom
Tel +61 1300 55 4757 Fax +61 3 9609 3015 Tel +44 20 7802 4000 Fax +44 20 7802 4111
Members of the BHP Billiton Group which is headquartered in Australia
Date: 26/07/2013 07:05:00 Produced by the JSE SENS Department. The SENS service is an information dissemination service administered by the JSE Limited ('JSE').
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