BHP mothballs Olympic Dam expansion (Olympic Dam is the name of the place where the mining expansion was to be constructed)
Date
August 22, 2012
Peter Ker

BHP Billiton has taken the axe to more than $US30 billion in spending on Australian expansion projects, in the clearest sign yet that the nation is past the peak of its resources boom.

BHP’s decision to change its strategy on its Olympic Dam expansion came as the company announced a 35 per cent slide in net profit

"It doesn't really make a lot of sense in this market for them to be engaging in a major capital spending program and to be bringing more supply onto the market in a time when prices are softening," said Gavin Wendt, publisher of resources newsletter Mine Life.

"The deposit isn't going anywhere and this decision gives them the sort of flexibility down the track to expand," he said. "In this environment it makes sense to maintain the status quo."
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The miner's shares ended 11 cents, or 0.3 per cent, lower at $33.16, after rising as much as 0.7 per cent in the wake of the announcement.

Beating estimates
BHP’s net profit of $US15.4 billion was well below last year’s figure of $US22.46 billion but beat market consensus of $US14.6 billion.

But the change of direction on Olympic Dam had dominated this afternoon’s results, and marks a dramatic change in BHP’s fortunes over the past nine months.

The world's biggest miner said it won't meet a December 15 deadline to approve the copper and uranium mine expanion. Instead, it will investigate less expensive methods to lift production at the South Australian mine.

http://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/stay-out-of-australia--bhp-boss-te...

Australia’s Resources Minister Martin Ferguson has rejected the suggestions that the Labor Government’s new mining and carbon taxes had influenced the Olympic Dam decision.
“This is purely a commercial decision, it is in no way related to any regulatory decision,” he said.
hehe typical politician

....now this today on Yahoo
Two days after mining giant BHP Billiton announced it was scrapping a $30 billion expansion plan in South Australia, its chief Marius Kloppers has warned European investors to stay away from Australia.
According to Fairfax reports, Kloppers told British media that new investments in Australia's coal sector would not be profitable given the country’s carbon and mining taxes.

Stay out of Australia: BHP boss tells foreign investors
http://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/stay-out-of-australia--bhp-boss-te...