BHP Group's iron ore production in the first quarter of this year was a little below estimates, according to a report released on Tuesday. This is because planned maintenance at Port Hedland - including the rebuilding of an equipment - impacted its operations in Western Australia.

The largest listed mining company in the world said that iron ore production on a 100 percent basis from its Western Australia operations was 70.2 Mt for the three-month period ended September 30 compared to a VisibleAlpha consensus estimate of 71.55Mt.

BHP's Western Australian iron ore operations had produced 71.6 Mt of iron ore a year ago.

BHP reported a 5% increase in sales of lumps with higher value.

BHP reported that the major rebuild of Car Dumper 3 in Port Hedland was completed 8% earlier than scheduled. The project reduced volume by 4.3 millions tonnes, on a 100 percent basis.

Car Dumper 3 has been rebuilt after heavy years of use to increase its reliability and extend its lifespan.

BHP's forecast of iron ore production in Western Australia for fiscal 2026 remained unchanged between 284 and 296 Mt.

The total production of copper for the group increased by 4%, to 493.6 kilograms. The company's output forecasts for 2026 remain unchanged.

BHP said that both stages of Canada’s Jansen Potash Project were progressing well, with Stage 1 73% completed and on track for production to begin in 2027. Stage 2 is 13% complete. (Reporting and editing by Maju Samuel in Bengaluru, with Roshan Thomas and Rishav chatterjee from Bengaluru)

(source: Reuters)