Wrapped: Australia’s six biggest copper mines in 2023

BHP’s Olympic Dam is Australia’s largest single copper mine.

Demand for copper has ramped up exponentially in recent years as energy transition technologies become increasingly central to global net-zero plans. This trend is set to continue through this decade and the next. 

According to data from Mining Technology’s parent company GlobalData, Australia stood as the world’s seventh-biggest producer of copper in 2022 and accounted for 4% of global production. Although the metal is not listed in the country’s national Critical Minerals Strategy, it is recognised on its Strategic Materials List as an essential mineral for the energy transition, with several companies operating in Australia committing to a ramp up in copper production last year. 

An analysis of GlobalData’s copper database, based on data from 2022, reveals Australia’s six biggest operational mines by production in 2023. Major deals and announcements of planned closures towards the end of the year could bring changes to Australia’s copper landscape over the second half of the decade. Mergers and expansion plans from Australian mining major BHP have landed its mines in three of the top six spots.

The Olympic Dam Mine, owned wholly by BHP, is the country’s largest single copper mine. Located in South Australia, which holds 69% of Australia’s copper reserves, the underground mine sits on the fourth-biggest copper deposit in the world. It produced approximately 205 thousand tonnes of copper for 2023 and is set to continue drilling throughout 2024, with eight active drill rigs currently operational. The company expects copper production for the South Australia region to end on 310 to 340 thousand tonnes for FY24. 

In April last year, Australia’s Federal Court approved BHP’s $6.4bn takeover of Australian copper miner Oz Minerals, with the acquisition finalised in May. BHP CEO Mike Henry said at the time that the deal will strengthen the company’s copper portfolio, particularly in South Australia.  

BHP has also shifted focus to increasing its global copper output, which increased 11% year-on-year for 2023’s third quarter. At the beginning of the year, the company said it would accelerate its exploration of copper and nickel across its mining assets. It selected seven early-stage mineral start-ups to receive funding for exploration in a bid to “fast-track” its global copper production. 

The mine opened in 1988 and is expected to operate for another 55 years, with a closure date of 2079.

Newcrest’s Cadia Mine is a collection of underground and open pit gold and copper mines located in Australia’s Cadia Valley in New South Wales. It produced approximately 105 thousand tonnes of copper in 2023, a considerable increase from the 85 thousand tonnes it produced in 2022. The surge in production is in line with Newcrest’s plans, published at the end of 2022, to ramp up exploration and output at the mine. 

Australia’s second-biggest copper mine also ran into environmental trouble midway through last year. In May, New South Wales’ Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) served Newcrest with a final pollution prevention notice, ordering the company to immediately lower its “unacceptable” levels of dust pollution produced by the mine’s operations.

At the end of July, struggling to clean up operations as they stood, Cadia slowed its underground mining rates in response to the EPA’s notice, which concluded the mine was falling “well short” of its legal obligations to meet clean air standards. Newcrest said at the time it did not expect material impacts to production output as a result of its operational adjustments. 

Last year also saw the closing of US gold mining giant Newmont’s $16.8bn takeover offer for Newcrest in one of the biggest deals the sector has seen in decades. The merger will see the formation of the world’s biggest gold miner and will also boost copper production, Newmont said in November.

The Mount Isa Copper Mine, owned and operated by Swiss mining major Glencore, is located in Queensland and comprises two underground mines.

Its Enterprise mine is its biggest source of copper ore and is also the deepest mine in Australia, reaching depths of 1,900m. The mine’s copper output has been in steady decline over the last few years. It produced around 71 thousand tonnes of copper in 2023, down from 102 thousand tonnes seen at the end of 2019. 

Despite being Australia’s third-biggest copper producing mine and one of the biggest sources of copper in the world historically, in October Glencore announced plans to close its underground copper mines by mid-2025. This will include its Enterprise, X41 and Black Rock mines, as well as the nearby Lady Loretta Zinc mine, although the company plans to continue its smelting operations at the Mount Isa site. 

Glencore cited the economic unviability of mining what’s left in the ground; low-quality ore after six decades of supply depletion and poor geological conditions. The closure, which is expected to impact at least 1,000 jobs at the site, led the Queensland government to offer a $31.7m support package for workers that will be affected.

The Ernest Henry Mine, now wholly owned by Evolution Mining after the company bought out Glencore’s 70% stake in 2021, is an underground copper and gold mine located in Queensland. It is estimated to produce 50 thousand tonnes of copper for FY24, up from around 47 thousand tonnes for FY23. 

A serious weather event in March last year caused the mine to temporarily reduce output, the company said. This slightly impacted production rates for several months until full production capacity was resumed by the end of June.  

Operations at the site, which began as open pit in the late 1990s, only moved underground in 2011. At the beginning of June, Evolution announced plans to extend the life of the Ernest Henry mine by 17 years, pushing back its closure from 2033 to 2040. The company said at the time that it had doubled the mine’s ore reserves of both copper and gold.

The Carrapateena Mine, owned by BHP, is an underground mine also located in South Australia that now makes up a significant portion of the miner’s dominant portfolio in the area. BHP has wholly owned the mine since last year, acquiring it after its buyout of Oz Minerals. 

It is a relatively new mine, only starting production at the very end of 2019, but has ramped up output of copper, gold and silver quickly over the last four years. In 2023, it produced around 66 thousand tonnes of copper, up from 57 thousand tonnes in 2022. Before production began, Carrapateena stood as one of the world’s biggest undeveloped copper projects. 

It is expected to operate for another 21 years, with a closure date currently set for 2045.

The Prominent Hill Mine is an underground and surface copper, silver and gold mine situated on traditional lands in north-west South Australia. It produces one of the highest grades of copper concentrate in the world.

Like Carrapateena, BHP acquired the mine in its entirety last year after its takeover of Oz Minerals. It produced an estimated 51 thousand tonnes of copper in 2023, down slightly year-on-year.  

BHP has plans to combine the Prominent Hill mine with its Carrapateena, Olympic Dam and Oak Dam sites to create a huge ‘super-project’ called Copper South Australia, although this could be put at risk by the government’s proposed “same job, same pay” labour rights legislation.

The bill would amend labour laws to ensure hired temporary workers are paid the same as permanent employees in the same company doing the same work. BHP and other miners have opposed the bill, claiming it will drive up costs and lower competition. 

Prominent Hill is expected to have a relatively short lifespan. It began operations in 2009 and is due to close in 2036.