First-phase Olympic Dam expansion by 2013

Global mining company BHP Billiton says it expects the first stage of its five-phase Olympic Dam expansion to be in production by 2013.

Olympic Dam is located about 560 kilometres north of Adelaide in South Australia and houses the world's largest known uranium resource, the fourth-largest copper deposit and the fifth-largest gold deposit.

The first phase will optimise the existing underground operation and increase its production capacity to 200,000 t of copper, 4500 t of uranium and 3700 kg of gold.

Olympic Dam expansion project director Ted Bassett said the development of the open pit is to "take five years", with the ore processing expansion to be developed in three stages.

The mine has a capacity to produce 180,000 t of copper and 4000 t of uranium per year, with the staged expansion looking to increase copper and uranium output to 730,000 and 19,000 t, respectively.

Bassett said an environmental impact statement for Olympic Dam had been completed for internal review, with approval expected to take between 12 to 18 months.

The company has said previously that the Olympic Dam orebody is "relatively complex" and that uncertainty about the "size, cost, timing and eventual configuration of the expansion project" remains.

BHP Billiton did not provide an updated capital cost estimate for the project.

The last capital cost estimate for the expansion was $8.92 billion, but some analysts suggest that figure could have climbed as high as $29.73 billion.

BHP Billiton reiterated its preference to process concentrate from Olympic Dam overseas rather than in SA, which the local government has requested to ensure maximum job opportunities for the state.

"Shipping copper concentrate and not cathode allows capital-intensive smelter to move to China," Bassett said.

Olympic Dam has been touted by BHP Billiton as one of the company's "outstanding growth prospects" that underpinned its takeover proposal for rival Rio Tinto.

BHP Billiton expects the $104.06 billion takeover attempt to go live in early 2009, provided all the necessary regulatory hurdles are cleared.