SGC Tour BHP’s Oak Dam Project

The Chair of the Spencer Gulf Cities (SGC), Mayor Leon Stephens from Port Pirie Regional Council, Mayor Shine from Port Augusta Council and the SGC Executive Officer, Wendy Campana, were hosted by BHP on a tour of the Oak Dam Project last week. Unfortunately, due to other engagements, Mayor Stone, was unable to attend.

BHP is undertaking exploration drilling at its Oak Dam Project, and last year announced an Inferred Mineral Resource at Oak Dam for the first time. . The project, should it proceed, has the potential to provide further opportunities for local and regional investment and growth for businesses in the region – in addition to BHP’s existing Copper SA operations.

BHP’s South Australian operations, Copper SA, consists of three operating underground mines at Prominent Hill, Olympic Dam and Carrapateena that feed concentrate into a central smelter and refinery complex at Olympic Dam, the Oak Dam exploration shows the continued potential of the province. This forms part of BHP’s broader strategy to grow copper production out of South Australia. Last year, BHP outlined a pathway to increase copper production in South Australia to more than 500,000 tonnes of refined copper cathode a year by the early 2030s, and a strategy to deliver up to 650,000 tonnes from the mid-2030s – up from ~322,000 tonnes last financial year.

The Oak Dam tour provided by BHP overviewed the:

• history of the project.
• quality and scale of the copper resource being explored.
• exploration techniques being adopted along with testing and storage arrangements.
• consultation strategies with Traditional Owners and the general community.
• facilities and support provided to workers.

Mayor Stephens said “BHP’s Oak Dam Project could have huge implications for the economic development of the Upper Spencer Gulf, particularly given the global need for copper. It was great to see firsthand how the project is progressing and to be briefed by various staff from drillers to geologists working behind the scenes. We were particularly impressed with the energy and commitment of the young workers that briefed us – they were an impressive group”.

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Mayor Leon Stephens Mob: 0417 080 961

Mayor Linley Shine Mob: 0419 423 777

Wendy Campana Mob: 0417 861 783