Worley and BHP: Advancing South Australian Copper Growth

BHP has awarded Worley contracts to provide study and engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) services for potential expansion projects at Olympic Dam and Carrapateena, two of BHP's flagship copper assets in South Australia. 

The awards, which remain subject to a final investment decision by BHP, sit within BHP's Copper South Australia growth plans, designed to lift production as global demand for copper continues to rise on the back of electrification and the broader energy transition.

Worley will deliver services concurrently across multiple project phases.

Backing copper's role in electrification

Copper is a foundational material for electrification, renewable power generation and electric vehicles, making it a priority commodity for companies positioning themselves for the energy transition.

For Worley, the BHP awards extend a relationship built over several years of consulting support across BHP's growth planning.

"This contract reflects Worley's continued focus on energy transition materials, such as copper, as a priority growth market,” says Chris Ashton, the company’s CEO. “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."

Worley's consulting teams across the Asia-Pacific region have supported BHP's growth planning through development option studies, techno-economic modelling, logistics assessments and broader project planning activities, giving the company deep familiarity with the assets ahead of this next phase of work.

Delivering integrated project services

The scope of the potential Olympic Dam and Carrapateena projects covers underground mining, processing and infrastructure across a connected "cave to concentrate" programme, spanning potential block cave development and associated infrastructure at Olympic Dam and the potential expansion of Carrapateena's underground operations and processing infrastructure.

Initial EPCM services have already commenced for early-phase activities at both sites.

Structuring delivery across project phases

To manage a program of this complexity, Worley is structuring its involvement around several core elements:

• Concurrent study and EPCM services across multiple project phases
• Full scope coverage from underground mining through to processing and infrastructure
• A core delivery team based in Australia
• Specialist engineering providers supplementing in-house capability
• Globally Integrated Delivery support, including from China and Chile

"We are proud to be partnering with Worley to help deliver the next phase of Copper South Australia's growth,” says Pedram Ittehadi, Head of CuSA Major Projects at BHP.

“These projects are focused on improving capital intensity and unlocking additional value from our world-class assets through targeted expansions of material handling and concentrating facilities at both Carrapateena and Olympic Dam. Worley's capability and experience will be important as we progress our plans to sustainably grow copper production and meet increasing global demand for this critical commodity."

Worley's key business partners:

bp

Worley holds a global strategic alliance with bp spanning site projects across bp's operations business, focused on improving safety, reducing emissions and supporting high-value, lower-cost project activity. It reflects Worley's long-standing, multi-decade relationship with bp across engineering and project delivery services in the energy sector, spanning multiple geographies and asset types.

Chevron

Chevron is one of Worley's longstanding customers, with a partnership spanning more than two decades. Worley supports Chevron across engineering, project delivery and asset services, reflecting its broader positioning as an accountable delivery partner across the full lifecycle of complex energy assets, from concept through to operations.

Shell 

Worley counts Shell among its longest-standing customer relationships, with more than 20 years of partnership. This spans consulting, engineering and project delivery services supporting Shell's asset portfolio, consistent with Worley's model of providing integrated support across the full life of a customer's assets.

Woodside 

Woodside is another multi-decade Worley customer, drawing on Worley's project delivery and engineering expertise. The relationship reflects Worley's positioning as a long-term partner for major energy companies operating complex, large-scale assets, offering continuity of support from early planning through to operations.

INPEX

Worley maintains a strategic services partnership with INPEX, providing engineering and project support services. The relationship illustrates Worley's approach of forming long-term, embedded partnerships with resources companies, offering integrated technical and delivery expertise across their operating assets.