14.05.2012
BHP Billiton's petroleum chief executive left the door open to the possibility of a write-down on the company's U.S. shale gas assets on Monday, but defended their long-term value.
The company will review its assets at the end of the fiscal year on June 30, BHP chief petroleum executive J Michael Yeager told reporters in a briefing on Monday.
more22.03.2012
BHP Billiton is seeing signs that iron ore demand from top consumer China is flattening, raising concerns about Australia's trade outlook, but the world's biggest miner is pushing ahead with its ambitious plans to expand production.
Chinese demand for iron ore has been the driving force behind years of expansion work by the world's biggest mining companies.
more11.05.2011
BHP Billiton said on Tuesday it will move the head office of its diamonds and specialty products unit to Saskatchewan, a move that ties in with the Anglo-Australian miner's plans to develop the world's largest potash mine in the Western Canadian province.
more11.04.2011
BHP Billiton is in talks with Royal Dutch Shell on buying its 24.3% stake in Australia's Woodside Petroleum and the sides have been holding detailed discussions about a potential deal, the Australian Financial Review said on Monday without citing its sources.
However, it remained unclear if and when a deal could be concluded on Shell's Woodside stake, currently worth A$9.1 billion, with Shell saying it was not in a hurry to do anything, the paper said.
more06.04.2011
Companies eager to capitalize on the shale revolution are buying up other companies that have deeds to land with access to reserves.
Two multibillion-dollar deals in the first quarter show the interest companies have in scooping up shale plays for the resources and technology. Below are major shale gas and oil acquisitions:
April 2011
more29.03.2011
India received 74 bids for 33 oil and gas exploration blocks on Monday, but the latest licensing round aimed at attracting increased private investment failed to draw big global firms needed to boost the sector.
India is wooing private capital for exploration and encouraging local firms to buy stakes in foreign oil and gas projects to meet its surging energy needs. Asia's third-largest economy imports over 70 % of its crude and is keen to tap quickly domestic reservoirs.
more28.03.2011
BHP Billiton said it has approved $9.5 billion of capital investments to expand Australian iron ore and coal mining projects, in the first details the global miner has given of a planned $80 billion in investments over five years.
The world's biggest miner has decided to expand its own operations and infrastructure rather than chase ambitious takeovers, after three failed takeover bids, as it scrambles to meet rising demand from Asia.
more10.03.2011
German fertilizer supplier K+S proposed a higher-than-expected dividend, banking on a marked profit increase as farmers' demand gets a boost from strong grain and crop prices.
The world's fourth-largest potash miner reiterated that 2011 operating earnings adjusted for effects from currency hedging instruments would be significantly higher than last year.
more23.02.2011
BHP Billiton is buying shale gas assets from Chesapeake Energy Corp for $4.75 billion, pitting itself for the first time against oil giants and China in the battle for the fast-growing energy source in North America.
The deal marks the top global miner's first attempt at picking up assets since failing on three mega-deals over the past three years and sets it further apart from its mining peers with a big bet on the world's biggest gas market.
more03.02.2011
BHP Billiton, which failed in its $39 billion bid for Canada's Potash Corp last year, said its Jansen potash project has moved into the feasibility study phase.
An environmental impact statement for the project in Canada was submitted in December and Wednesday's announcement is an advanced stage of the approvals process.
Record-high world food prices have fuelled a surge in demand for fertilizer products, a move that was highlighted by BHP's approach to Potash Corp last August.
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