BHP Billiton Q1 Iron Ore Output Up 23%, Lifts FY Output Guidance

(RTTNews) - BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP, BHP.AX, BBL, BLT.L) Monday said its iron ore production for the first quarter increased 23 percent, while lifting its full year production outlook.

For the first quarter ended September 30, 2013, BHP's iron ore production increased 23 percent to 48.8 million tons from a year ago. On a sequential basis, production improved 2 percent.

Iron ore is one of the major contributor to BHP's bottom line, with the mining giant increasing its production due mainly on higher demand for the steel-making raw material from China.

BHP lifted its full-year iron ore production outlook to 212 million tons from its prior estimate of 207 million tons.

Chief Executive Andrew Mackenzie said, "Our pursuit of productivity gains and operating excellence is already yielding strong results. There is no better example than in our Iron Ore business, where the deployment of mobile crushing units and the continued debottlenecking of the supply chain has underpinned a five million ton increase in Western Australia Iron Ore's production guidance for the 2014 financial year."

BHP's first-quarter production of metallurgical coal, which is also used in steel making, grew 14 percent to 10.2 million tons from last year, but declined 6 percent sequentially.

Energy coal production grew 3 percent from the prior-year quarter to 19.6 million tons. Total petroleum production for the quarter grew 2 percent from the year-ago period to 62.7 million barrels of oil equivalent.

The company's alumina production grew 7 percent to 1.25 million tons from last year. Aluminum production for the quarter increased 15 percent to 0.31 million tons from the year-ago period.

BHP's copper production rose 6 percent to 403.3 million tons, while nickel rose 9 percent to 40.4 million tons.

BHP closed Monday's trading at $70.38, up $0.78 or 1.12%, on the NYSE. The stock dropped $0.12 or 0.17% in after-hours trade.