BHP says solar farm not dumped but merged into a “much larger” hybrid renewable and storage project

BHP says plans to install a solar farm at a Pilbara iron ore mine have been incorporated into “a much larger solar, wind and battery option,” amid reports the mining giant is scrapping projects and walking away from efforts to decarbonise.

ABC News reported on Tuesday that BHP had binned plans to build a 50 megawatt (MW) solar farm at its Jimblebar mine and a 40 megawatt-hour (MWh) battery energy storage system in Newman, as a result of budget cuts.

The report cites “internal documents” seen by the ABC, which reportedly say that the projects have ceased “due to capital constraints.”

“Its scope has been transferred to the larger WAIO [WA Iron Ore] renewables program which seeks to deliver renewables through commercial arrangements,” the document reportedly says.

These reports were pounced upon by the Greens, who say the apparent change of plans by BHP tracks with the broader trend of fossil fuel giants “stepping back from decarbonisation the moment it cuts into their profit margins.” 

“BHP is one of the world’s largest polluters, yet it has chosen to abandon projects that would have slashed its emissions,” the Greens spokesperson for resources, Senator Steph Hodgins-May said on Tuesday.

“This decision flies in the face of climate science and the Paris Climate Accord which BHP claims to support.”

But in a statement emailed to Renew Economy on Tuesday afternoon, BHP’s vice president of operational decarbonisation minerals in Australia, Dan Heal, said BHP is still “firmly committed” to decarbonisation and electrification of its Australian mining operations.

“The previously proposed inland solar project has been incorporated into a much larger solar, wind and battery option that aligns with the step up in demand that the electrification of our mines will bring,” Heal said. “Studies are well underway on this.

“Electrification remains our preferred pathway to displace the use of diesel in our operations – our largest source of operational greenhouse gas emissions in the Pilbara – however the pace of development of some decarbonisation technology has slowed,” Deal said.

Here, Heal refers to the delay to the electrification of BHP’s fleet of massive mining vehicles, as reported in the company’s full year financial results presentation and speech last month.

As reported on Renew Economy’s dedicated electric vehicle news and analysis website, The Driven, BHP said in its results announcement that its “previously anticipated spend on operational decarbonisation” had been shunted into “the 2030s.”

But in the statement on Tuesday, Deal said the miner was working closely with the manufacturers of the technology and was expecting to begin trials including battery electric haul trucks and locomotives at its WA operations “in the coming months.”

“We’ve made great progress in reducing emissions at our sites, including in Australia,” he said.

“More than 70% of the electricity demand at our operations is now met from renewable energy sources. We will continue to build on this strong foundation and further support the development of renewables in the years ahead.”

“I want to be clear that we remain firmly committed to our climate commitments and are on track to meet our FY2030 operational greenhouse gas emissions reduction target,” Heal added.

BHP’s is targeting a 30 per cent reduction in Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions from its operational assets by 2030, from a 2020 baseline. Although, according to the 2025 Financial Year report, its operational GHG emissions are already 36% below the FY20 baseline.

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