BHP Billiton Summary

Ker, P. and Manning, P. 2012, ‘Taxes a drag on coal, Kloppers warns investors’, Sydney Morning Herald, 24 August, viewed 1 September 2012,

Summary
Ker and Manning’s (2012) article discusses the implications faced by BHP Billiton, as a result of the Australian carbon and mining taxes which has caused foreign investors to substantially decrease their investment into the Australian coal industry, that has resulted in the delay of the expansion of Olympic Dam mine. This article reflects the political and regulatory influences that occur in the business environment and how companies must respond to changes in rules and regulations enacted by the government even if there are repercussions.

Application of Concepts
This article contains concepts
However, with the introduction of this government tax policy, BHP Billiton action to delay their expansion project has come with much criticism, as it has resulted in a number of job losses (Stewart 2012). It has affected South Australia substantially and is a major disappointment for the nation as a whole, stated by Iggulden (2012). This shows that ‘political developments have significant implications for the real economy’ (Caliskan and Koksal 2011).

Nevertheless, BHP Billiton cannot be blamed in their response since it is not the only mining company to respond to the government tax policy this way. As stated by Stewart (2012), ‘Major mining companies around the world are revisiting their investment plans and refocusing on cutting costs.’ Hence, BHP Billiton responded to the political/ regulatory influences on their businesses in the most effective and efficient manner, as it was necessary and therefore adapting to the changes in the business
2011, ‘Building Better Community Relationships’, Amma, viewed 1 September 2012,

Bolt, A. 2012, ‘Kloppers confirms: government taxes bad for mining investments’, Herald Sun, 24 August, viewed 1 September 2012,

Caliskan, A. and Koksal, C. 2011, ‘Political Business Cycles, Partisan Politics and the Effects of Political Events on the Stock Market: Evidence from a Developing Economy’, SSRN Working Paper Series, viewed on 9 September 2012,

Carroll, A.B. and Shabana, K.M. 2010, ‘The business case for corporate social responsibility: a review of concepts, research and practice’, International Journal of Management Reviews, vol. 12, no. 1 pp. 85- 105.

Coopes, A. 2012, ‘BHP delays Olympic Dam project as profits dive’, Yahoo News, 22 August, viewed 1 September 2012,

DiPiazza, A. S. and Brenner, I. 2010, ‘Integrating Political Risk Into Enterprise Risk Management’, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, viewed 31 August 2012,

Fitzgerald, B. and White, A. 2012, ‘Rio shrugs off BHP’s problems’, The Australian, viewed 1 September 2012,

Gaete, P. 2012, ‘Expert: BHP Billiton spends more on CSR than rest of mining council, 8 June 2009, viewed 1 September