SA’s Orion Minerals selected for BHP's mining incubator program

ORION Minerals, the JSE listed copper and zinc exploration and development company operating in the Northern Cape, has become one of 10 early-stage companies from other countries to join the 2026 BHP Xplor program, the first incubator of its kind in the mining industry.

- EDWARD WEST

The cohort was selected based on the strength of their ideas, technical capability, and potential to contribute to the long-term supply of future-facing commodities. Each company receives an equity-free grant of $500 000, along with structured learning, mentoring, and access to BHP specialists across exploration, technology, and commercial functions. Since launching in 2023, BHP Xplor has supported 21 companies across three cohorts, building a global network of explorers and innovators focused on early-stage discovery.

BHP Group Exploration officer Tim O'Connor said in an interview with BR, that the success of the program so far could be indicated by the fact that BHP had established some kind of partnership with about 40% of previous cohort participants, after their participation in the program.

For BHP, such partnering could potentially speed up exploration, cohort members brought valuable expertise about their projects, and other knowledge such as about the communities in which they operate, which could benefit a scaled-up project over the longer term, said O'Connor.