BHP on target

Press, 2 May 1984, Page 28

BHP on target

NZPA-AAP Melbourne The Broken HUI Proprietary Company, Ltd, has reinforced market predictions of a record sAust6oo million annual profit after releasing its March production report showing the highest monthly steel output since August, 1982, and the continuing strength of the oil division. Higher productivity and the restructuring of its steel division is now benefiting Australia’s largest company. Steel output reaching 527,000 tonnes in March, 24.8 per cent above the same period last year and 14 per cent higher than for February. Production by the steel division in the latest 10 months was 11.5 per cent above the previous period, at 4.9 M tonnes, and the Melbourne broker, A. C. Goode and Company, forecast in April that the division could contribute SIOOM to the expected record annual profit of up to S66OM to May 31. The recovery in the steel division came after higher productivity per worker and redundancies. The recovery was highlighted in the nine months to February when it made a profit of SSSM compared to the $117.4M loss in the same period last year. The oil and gas division, the most profitable part of BHP, again reported healthy production levels in March although crude oil output from the Bass Strait

oilfields dropped because of shipping problems and government inspections of the onshore processing facilities. Crude oil output was 6.1 M barrels compared to the 6.7 M barrels produced in February and 5M barrels in March last year. Natural gas production rose to 205.1 M cu m compared to 1936 M cu m last year and 118.5 M cu m last month. The minerals division reported higher coal, iron ore and manganese production in March, but the raw coal and iron ore output by the steel division fell compared to the same period last year and last month. In the minerals division, clean coal production rose 56.1 per cent to 612,000 tonnes compared to March last year but fell 9.2 per cent compared to February. Iron ore production, including BHP’s share from Mount Newman in Western Australia, increased 54.2 per cent to 1.15 M tonnes compared to last year and rose 6.5 per cent against the production in February. Continuing growth, in sales of ore from Groote Eylandt resulted in a 25.5 per cent increase in manganese production to 124,000 tonnes in March compared to March, 1983, and 14.8 per cent up on February. The directors said that coal production by the steel division was below that forecast because of problems with mining equipment at the Macquarie and Corrimal mines, but that this was partly offset by higher output from the Appin Colliery, south of Sydney. Raw coal output fell 13 per cent to 616,000 tonnes in the latest month compared to last year and dropped 6.5 per cent on February’s production. Iron ore production by the division dropped to 108,000 tonnes in March, from 137,000 tonnes in March last year, and 118,000 tonnes in February.