West Musgrave, Australia / Copper and nickel
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West Musgrave is a high quality copper and nickel project in Western Australia, owned and operated by BHP.
In construction
Copper and nickel
BHP
Australia
Royalty rate and type
2% NSR
Balance sheet classification
Royalty Intangible
Key facts
80%
The project will be 80% powered by renewable sources of energy, with plans to take it to 100%, which will make it one of the largest fully off-grid renewable powered mines in the world
24 years
With a 24-year mine life and further extension potential, the site plan is for a mineral processing plant with a nameplate capacity of 13.5Mtpa
21%
Construction was 21% complete as at Q1 2024
The Group owns a 2.0% NSR royalty over the West Musgrave project (‘West Musgrave’) in Australia. Average annual production is expected to be approximately 35Kt of nickel and 41Kt of copper over the first five years of production and 27Kt of nickel and 33Kt of copper thereafter. Total reserves are estimated at 270Mt at 0.31% nickel and 0.34% copper.
West Musgrave is a large-scale nickel sulphide and copper development project located in Western Australia, approximately 1,300km north-east of Perth. The mine is owned and operated by BHP.
The West Musgrave project is a low cost, sustainable way of accessing two commodities, copper and nickel sulphide, that will play a vital role in the energy transition. The mine is expected to be relatively low cost and has strong sustainability credentials. Renewable sources of energy are expected to provide 80% of the power, with plans to increase it to 100%, which will make it one of the largest fully off-grid renewable powered mines in the world. Water requirements at the site can be met from a local aquifer system and a bore field.
The West Musgrave project’s economics remain robust, with BHP stating that the operation could generate reasonable returns despite a weak nickel price environment and assuming lower forward prices for nickel. However, in February 2024, BHP announced that it was conducting a review of its Western Australia Nickel operations, and subsequently stated the review would consider the phasing and capital spend for the development of the West Musgrave project.
In July 2024, BHP announced that these operations, including the construction of the West Musgrave project, will be temporarily suspended from October 2024 with the decision to be reviewed by February 2027.