BHP to cut Pilbara mine jobs in automation push

• BHP is reducing staff at its Mining Area C operation as part of a planned transition to self-driving dump trucks.
• Sources estimate job losses could affect up to 10% of the site's 1,596 workers, though redeployments remain possible.
• The redundancies form part of the final rollout phase of autonomous haulage technology across the company's Pilbara operations.

BHP (ASX:BHP) has informed staff of impending redundancies at its Mining Area C iron ore operation in Western Australia as part of a planned expansion of self-driving dump trucks.

The move follows a long-term strategy across the Pilbara region, where sister site South Flank fully transitioned to autonomous trucks in June 2023.

“The deployment of autonomous haulage at Mining Area C is being implemented through a phased approach — and the expansion into MAC East represents the next and final stage of that plan,” said a BHP spokesperson.

While industry estimates suggest up to 10% of the mine's 1,596 workers could be impacted, the company stated that it will prioritise identifying alternative roles across the broader business.

The workforce reductions follow separate recent job cuts at the company's FutureFit Academy training facility in Perth.

Following the announcement, the BHP share price was unchanged at $66.40.

The mining giant has progressively introduced autonomous haulage technology across its Western Australian iron ore network over the past decade, beginning with its Jimblebar site in 2017.

BHP recently reported full-year iron ore earnings of US$14.5 billion on the back of record annual production reaching 265 million tonnes.