Splash247: BHP awards $130m contract for Port Hedland capacity expansion

Published by Splash247

Australian engineering group Monadelphous has secured a A$200m ($130m) contract to build a sixth car dumper at BHP’s Nelson Point terminal in Port Hedland, part of the miner’s plan to lift iron ore export capacity from the world’s largest bulk port.

The work covers structural, mechanical, piping, electrical, and instrumentation activities for Car Dumper 6 and its supporting conveyors and materials-handling infrastructure.

Construction is due to start immediately and run through to 2028, with the new facility expected to help keep at least five car dumpers in operation more than 90% of the time, up from around 60% today.

BHP said the upgrade, delivered under its Port Debottlenecking Project 2, is part of the Western Australia Iron Ore Port Program and will help sustain production of more than 305m tonnes per year over the medium term.

Nelson Point is one of BHP’s two iron ore export hubs at Port Hedland, alongside Finucane Island, and forms a critical link in its integrated rail and port network in the Pilbara.

The contract follows an earlier A$175m ($175m) Monadelphous award this year for car dumper-related work at Finucane Island and comes as BHP and other Pilbara miners push to maximise throughput within the port’s overall capacity envelope.