West Musgrave

West Musgrave / Copper and nickel

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West Musgrave is a high quality copper and nickel project in Western Australia, owned and operated by BHP.

Stage

In construction

Commodity

Copper and nickel

Operator

BHP

Location

Australia

Royalty rate and type
2% NSR

Balance sheet classification
Royalty Intangible

What we own

The Group owns a 2.0% NSR royalty over the West Musgrave project (‘West Musgrave’) in Australia. Average annual production is expected to be approximately 35Kt of nickel and 41Kt of copper over the first five years of production and 27Kt of nickel and 33Kt of copper thereafter. Total reserves are estimated at 270Mt at 0.31% nickel and 0.34% copper. 

Operation 

West Musgrave is a large-scale nickel sulphide and copper development project located in Western Australia, approximately 1,300km north-east of Perth. The mine is owned and operated by BHP.

Why we own it 

The West Musgrave project is a low cost, sustainable way of accessing two commodities, copper and nickel sulphide, that will play a vital role in the energy transition. The mine is expected to be relatively low cost and has strong sustainability credentials. Renewable sources of energy are expected to provide 80% of the power, with plans to increase it to 100%, which will make it one of the largest fully off-grid renewable powered mines in the world. Water requirements at the site can be met from a local aquifer system and a bore field.

Progress

The West Musgrave project’s economics remain robust, with BHP stating that the operation could generate reasonable returns despite a weak nickel price environment and assuming lower forward prices for nickel. However, as BHP studies a potential move into care and maintenance for Nickel West, it will consider the merits of phasing the remaining West Musgrave construction capital expenditure. The West Musgrave project is currently 21% complete, and first copper and nickel production had previously been targeted between Q4 2025 and calendar year 2026.

Key facts