In an announcement this morning, BHP listed a final dividend of 43 US cents a share; bringing the company’s full-year payout to 83 US cents. This was on the back of a 24% surge in revenue to $US38.3 billion.
The result was driven by the company’s Pilbara iron ore operations which delivered revenue of $US14.6 billion, compared with $US10.5 billion last financial year. Unit cash costs at the company’s Pilbara iron ore operations fell 3% to $US14.60/t. The company lowered net debt by 37% to $US16.3 billion.
BHP Chairman, Jac Nasser, said: “Over the last five years, we have laid the foundations to significantly improve our return on capital and grow long-term shareholder value. We have reduced unit costs by over 40% and achieved over US$12 billion in productivity gains. Our capital allocation framework provides flexibility at the bottom of the cycle and discipline at the top. We have shifted our focus to low-cost, high-return latent capacity projects which has allowed us to reduce capital expenditure by over 70%.
“We strengthened our balance sheet and changed our dividend policy to make sure we have stability and flexibility to create value and reward shareholders in a more volatile environment. And we have reshaped our portfolio so that we focus on large, long-life, low-cost assets that will support shareholder returns for decades to come. At the end of this month, I leave my role as Chairman knowing these strong foundations, proven strategy and core values position BHP well for the future.”
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