BHP has reported significant underlying profit in the first half of the 2022 financial year (FY22), backed by near-record production from its Western Australia Iron Ore (WAIO) operations.
The major miner’s profit jumped 144 per cent to $US9.44 billion ($13.25 billion) when compared to the first half of FY21. BHP’s total revenue increased by 32 per cent to $US33.78 billion across the same timeframe.
Despite being affected by COVID-induced labour constraints, WAIO produced approximately 127 million tonnes (144 million tonnes on 100 per cent basis) from July to December 2021.
BHP also benefited from improved commodity prices in the half-year, with its iron ore changing hands at $US113.54 per wet metric tonne (wmt) compared to $US103.78/wmt in the first half of FY21.
The miner was trading copper at $US4.31 per pound during the six-month period, a 30 per cent increase from the first half of FY21. This led to $US8.49 billion of revenue from BHP’s copper operations in the first half of FY22, an 18 per cent increase from the first six months of FY21 ($US7.07 billion).
BHP will pay a record interim dividend of $US1.50 per share, up from the $US1.01 per share dividend it declared a year earlier. This equates to $US7.6 billion of payouts and a 78 per cent payout ratio.
“BHP had a strong first half,” chief executive officer Mike Henry said.
“We achieved our third consecutive fatality-free calendar year. We mitigated the impacts of COVID-19 and significant adverse weather events to turn in a solid operational performance, particularly from our flagship Western Australian Iron Ore business.
“We have announced an interim dividend of $US1.50 per share, bringing total shareholder returns to more than $US22 billion over the past 18 months.
“Our record interim dividend was supported by our reliable operating performance and continued strong markets for a number of our products.”