Rapid Growth Project Stages 5 and 6, Western Australia

• Operators: BHP Billiton
• Location: Pilbara
• Timeframe: 2 years
• Cost: US$4.8b
• Employment: More than 2,000 construction jobs and about 450 operational jobs in 2010 and 950 in 2011
• Status: Work is expected to be completed during calendar year 2011 on BHP Billiton’s continued expansion of a number of sites in the Pilbara.

Awarded Contracts and Employment Opportunities include:

• Monadelphous; will provide structural and mechanical pre-works at Nelson Point as part of Stage 6.
• Joint venture partners, RCR Tomlinson and Laing O’Rourke - to design and construct primary and secondary crushing facilities, including overland conveyors.
• FAST is a joint venture between Fluor Australia and SKM to develop and deliver iron ore projects to meet the global market demand forecast for BHP Billiton’s Iron Ore business. The joint venture will provide program management of all projects and selected EPCM (engineering, procurement, construction and management) services.
• John Holland.
• Ausco Modular; installed a 1200 bed village and associated facilities at Yandi in the north of Western Australia. Work started on the village in July 2009 and was completed in January 2010.
• A Macmahon Holdings and Leighton Contractors 50/50 joint venture has been awarded a contract for the double tracking of sections of the Mount Newman rail line, plus the construction of more than 1,000 camp rooms complete with kitchens and recreation facilities, 1.2m cubic metres of earthworks, construction of ten new dual track bridges and installation of 840kms of fibre optic cable. Work has begun and is expected to be completed during the second half of 2010. The joint venture is expected to employ more than 1,100 workers over the life of the project and will encourage a high level of indigenous participation. NRW was recently awarded a $200m work package as part of the rail duplication contract.
• A subsidiary of the Norfolk Group – O’Donnell Griffin Rail - has secured a contract for rail signalling relocation and installation, which is expected to run for 18 months, beginning in June 2009.
• Monadelphous has secured a significant contract for major works, including structural, mechanical and piping works for the supply, preassembly and installation of the stockyard and train load out facilities and modifications to the existing Ore Handling Plant 2 (OHP2). Project works have commenced with substantial completion scheduled for the third quarter of calendar 2010.
• United Group Resources; awarded a $A165 million contract for the fabrication and on-site installation of structural steel and mechanical equipment associated with transfer stations, conveyors and shuttles.
• Downer EDI.
• AGC; awarded a $100m contract for the structural, mechanical, piping and heavy haulage at the company’s Yandi operation. The scope of work includes construction of an Ore Handling Plant, stockpile and conveyor systems; fabrication of 2,000 tonnes of conveyor components; and transportation of 43 structural modules - ranging from 100 to 300 tonnes - from Port Hedland to the Yandi mine site, located 140km northwest of Newman in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.