BHP Group is weighing the reopening of four defunct copper mines in Arizona and reprocessing their tailings after an Oval Office meeting, with CEO Mike Henry saying a “breathtaking” shift in US policy under President Donald Trump has made domestic projects more attractive and faster to permit.
The review, centered on the Globe-Miami region, adds near-term options to BHP’s copper push as the $140 billion miner rebalances away from iron ore toward metal used in wiring.
Henry said initiatives “put in place under President Donald Trump” led BHP to increase exploration in the US and to “review its options in Arizona,” adding that “the sector has never been more in the spotlight.” He described a very welcome shift, “the more supportive attitude towards mining, and the urgency behind getting mining up and going.”
The Resolution Copper project in Arizona, BHP’s joint venture with Rio Tinto, was discussed when Henry met Trump in the Oval Office in August. That project is said to be awaiting the outcome of several court cases before it can be developed.
BHP’s Arizona work now includes fresh exploratory drilling and a technical and economic review of legacy assets in Globe-Miami, where four defunct mines were closed decades ago.
Henry said higher copper prices, in combination with changed US policy, are among the factors driving the reassessment. Policy specifics cited include tariffs and faster mining permitting, which he said have improved project economics for domestic production. He added that tariffs “approved through a legislative process, rather than by executive order,” would give miners greater certainty for investments planned on multi-decade horizons.
Henry’s stance underscores a pragmatic shift from his prior free-trade advocacy. Last year in an interview, he said that Trump’s protectionist policies were “bad generally for the global economy and for commodities.”
“We have to live with the reality that we have,” he now says. “Governments around the world, and the voting public, have told us that trade is not going to be as free, going forward, as it was in the past four to five decades.”
On leadership continuity, Henry declined to comment on succession, saying, “I remain really engaged and energised by the role… There’s still so, so much more to do.”
The move comes after it was reported that BHP will begin settling 30% of its spot iron-ore sales to China in renminbi in Q4 2025, a quiet but consequential currency shift from US dollar.
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