BHP shareholder meeting: Executives discuss copper mine potential and advantages in the U.S. but remain tight-lipped about massive acquisitions

According to the Zhitong Finance APP, global mining giant BHP (BHP.US) strongly promoted the solid potential of its copper mining business and emphasized the investment attractiveness of the U.S. market during a shareholder report on Monday, but remained silent on the prospects for large-scale acquisitions. This was the first significant communication with investors by CEO Mike Henry and CFO Vandita Pant since the heavyweight cooperation between Anglo American and Teck Resources (TECK.US) was announced last week, during which they selectively answered questions. The executives' responses focused on three main areas: the growth potential of BHP's copper mining assets in Argentina, the investment attractiveness of the U.S. market, and the production delay issues of the Jansen potash project in Canada. It is currently unclear whether all questions submitted by shareholders were answered, as BHP did not immediately respond to requests for comments regarding the criteria for question selection. Henry stated, "The growth of the copper mining business is one of BHP's important development lines. We have made significant progress... In addition to achieving a 28% increase in copper mining capacity in recent years, we currently have four major copper growth bases." These four copper bases include: the Vicuna project operated in joint venture with Lundin Mining in Argentina (with both parties holding 50% stakes); the Resolution copper project in the U.S. in collaboration with Rio Tinto (RIO.US); the Escondida copper mine in Chile; and the copper mining business in South Australia. When asked whether BHP was considering acquiring Toronto-listed NGEX Minerals, which also operates in the Vicuna region of Argentina, Henry avoided the question. NGEX did not respond to requests for comments outside of working hours. Additionally, the meeting did not address significant merger and acquisition-related issues. The recently announced $53 billion merger deal between Anglo American and Teck Resources is widely regarded as likely to spur more M&A activity in the mining sector—previous attempts at consolidation in the industry over the years have largely failed, making this transaction a breakthrough development. It is worth mentioning that more than a year before this merger deal was announced, BHP had abandoned plans to acquire Anglo American for $49 billion. Had the acquisition been successful at that time, this Australian mining giant could have significantly enhanced its reserves of copper, a key metal for energy transition, through a single transaction. Last week, some investors and bankers believed that BHP would not get involved in the current merger deal between Anglo American and Teck Resources. The reason is that BHP is currently in a management transition period, with the company's focus on expanding its own copper mining assets. Henry also pointed out that while Australia is re-evaluating production efficiency, the U.S. is striving to attract mining investments, with electricity costs being only half of those in Australia. He also admitted that the expected internal rate of return for the Jansen project will be under pressure after raising the capital expenditure budget in July and delaying the initial production timeline