Copper has overtaken iron ore as BHP’s biggest earnings contributor for the first full financial year, strengthening the commercial case behind the mining giant’s renewed exploration interest in Zambia.

Copper has become BHP’s biggest earnings contributor, generating $18.2 billion in EBITDA in FY2026.Stronger copper prices lifted earnings despite a 3% drop in production, highlighting rising demand for the metal.The shift is strengthening BHP’s interest in Zambia, where it is exploring for potentially large copper deposits.BHP has not committed to a Zambian mine yet, with its activity still at the early exploration stage.

BHP reported $18.19 billion in underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation from copper during the year ended 30 June 2026.

That placed copper ahead of iron ore, which generated approximately $14.5 billion, marking an important shift for a company whose profits have historically been dominated by Western Australia’s vast iron ore operations.

Copper contributed 54 per cent of BHP’s $32.9 billion in group underlying EBITDA, compared with 45 per cent in the previous financial year.

The results show that copper has moved beyond being a long-term growth plan for BHP and become its most important current earnings engine.

BHP’s underlying attributable profit rose 30 per cent to $13.2 billion, while its statutory profit increased 9 per cent to $9.8 billion. The two measures differ because underlying profit removes exceptional and non-operating items.

Revenue increased 15 per cent to $58.8 billion. The company declared a final dividend of 99 US cents per share, bringing its full-year dividend to $1.72 per share, the highest in four years.

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Copper price offsets lower production

BHP produced approximately 1.95 million tonnes of copper during the financial year, down 3 per cent from the previous year.

However, its average realised copper price increased by about 35 per cent to $5.74 per pound, while unit costs declined across parts of its portfolio.

Zambia produced 890,346 tonnes of copper in 2025 and is targeting annual output of three million tonnes by 2031.

Those movements helped lift copper earnings by around 48 per cent despite the reduction in production.

BHP currently produces copper principally from operations in Chile, Australia and Peru. It also has development interests in Argentina and the United States.

The company expects global copper consumption to rise from approximately 34 million tonnes annually to more than 50 million tonnes by 2050.

Copper is needed for electricity networks, renewable energy infrastructure, electric vehicles, construction and data centres. The expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure is adding another source of demand because data centres require large amounts of power and electrical equipment.

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BHP estimates that the market could require more than 2.5 million tonnes of additional, currently unapproved mine supply by 2030 to remain balanced. It says the gap could widen to 10 million tonnes during the following decade.

Against that outlook, the company plans to raise its copper production by as much as 40 per cent between the 2027 and 2035 financial years.

Zambia returns to BHP’s exploration map

Although BHP’s established copper growth portfolio remains concentrated outside Africa, the company has begun examining opportunities in Zambia.

Zambia’s Ministry of Mines and Minerals Development said in April that BHP was interested in conducting large-scale copper exploration in the country.

The disclosure followed meetings in Lusaka involving BHP’s head of global generative exploration, Campbell McCuaig, and Zambian mining officials.

According to the ministry, BHP is interested in deposits that may be buried deeply underground or concealed beneath layers of geological material, making them difficult to locate using conventional exploration methods.

McCuaig said BHP was applying advanced geological techniques and large-scale data analysis to identify the mineral systems in which major copper deposits may have formed.

He also welcomed Zambia’s attempts to improve access to geological information through airborne surveys and the digitisation of historical records.

Separately, BHP organised exploration workshops in South Africa, Namibia, Angola and Zambia during April and May. The sessions brought together junior mining companies, geological agencies, universities and research institutions.

BHP said it selected South Africa for the launch of its 2026 exploration programme because Africa would play an important role in the world’s future mineral discovery pipeline.

BHP is examining the potential for large, deeply buried copper deposits in Zambia but has not announced an investment or mining project.

Why BHP’s interest is significant

BHP’s renewed attention is notable because the company has maintained a limited direct presence in Africa since separating a collection of assets into South32 in 2015.

Its investment in Tanzania’s Kabanga nickel project represented one of its few significant African ventures in the following decade, but BHP later exited that investment.

The company’s unsuccessful attempt to acquire Anglo American in 2024 also drew attention to its reluctance to retain Anglo’s South African iron ore and platinum operations.

Its latest exploration activity suggests that BHP remains interested in African mineral resources, particularly where projects fit its preference for large and long-life deposits.

Zambia is Africa’s second-largest copper producer after the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The country produced 890,346 tonnes in 2025, an increase of approximately 8 per cent from 825,513 tonnes in 2024. Nevertheless, production missed the government’s target of one million tonnes.

Output declined by 4.27 per cent to 208,992 tonnes during the first quarter of 2026, although production from large-scale mines increased slightly. Operational problems among some producers accounted for the overall decline.

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Zambia wants to increase annual copper production to three million tonnes by 2031. That would require the country to more than triple its 2025 output within six years.

Existing producers and investors include First Quantum Minerals, Barrick Mining, Vedanta Resources, China’s JCHX Mining and the United Arab Emirates’ International Resources Holding.

The country is also developing the $2.2 billion Mingomba project, backed by KoBold Metals, whose investors include Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos.

Exploration interest is not an investment commitment

Despite the stronger commercial case for copper, BHP has not announced the acquisition of a Zambian asset, an exploration licence or a committed investment in the country.

Its publicly identified copper growth projects remain in Chile, Argentina, Australia and the United States.

The company’s Zambia activity is therefore best understood as early exploration interest and information gathering, rather than a confirmed return through a mine or major capital project.

Zambia must also address electricity shortages, smelting constraints and regulatory uncertainty if it is to convert increased international interest into sustained production.

Nevertheless, BHP’s latest results strengthen Zambia’s pitch.

For the world’s largest listed miner, copper is no longer simply the metal expected to power the future. It is already producing more earnings than iron ore.