BHP Billiton is a global leader in the resources industry, it appeared following the results of a merger of BHP Limited (now BHP Billiton Limited) and Billiton Plc (now BHP Billiton Plc), which was concluded on 29 June 2001.

BHP Brief History
BHP was incorporated in 1885. A global natural resources company, BHP engaged in the discovery, development, production and marketing of iron ore, coal, copper, oil and gas, diamonds, silver, lead, zinc and a range of other natural resources. BHP was also a market leader in value-added flat steel products. BHP comprised three main operating businesses — minerals, petroleum and steel. These commodity streams were supported by a transport and logistics business, a corporate services group, and functional groups for finance, strategy and legal. Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, BHP employed around 30,000 employees worldwide.

Billiton Brief History
Billiton has roots that go back as far as 1860 when the articles of association were approved by a meeting of shareholders in the Het Groot Keizerhof hotel in The Hague, Netherlands. Two months later, the company acquired the concession to a tin-rich island in the Indonesian archipelago near Sumatra. The island was called Billiton (now Belitung), hence the name.
Prior to its merger with natural resources company BHP, Billiton was a global leader in the metals and mining sector, and a major producer of aluminium and alumina, chrome and manganese ores and alloys, steaming coal, nickel and titanium minerals. Billiton also developed a substantial and growing copper portfolio.
Shareholder growth was derived from a large portfolio of assets, diversified by commodity and by country, together with Billiton's quality operations and managerial acumen.
Headquartered in London, Billiton employed some 30,000 people worldwide, with major operations and development projects in Australia, North and South America, and southern Africa.

After the merger BHP Billiton has become a Dual Listed Company (DLC) comprising BHP Billiton Limited and BHP Billiton Plc. The two entities continue to exist as separate companies, but operate as a combined group known as BHP Billiton.

The headquarters of BHP Billiton Limited, and the global headquarters of the combined BHP Billiton Group, are located in Melbourne, Australia. BHP Billiton Plc is located in London, United Kingdom. Both companies have identical boards of directors and are run by a unified management team. Shareholders in each company have equivalent economic and voting rights in the BHP Billiton Group as a whole.

The DLC structure maintains pre-existing primary listings on the Australian Stock Exchange (through BHP Billiton Limited) and London Stock Exchange (through BHP Billiton Plc), along with a secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (through BHP Billiton Plc) and American Depositary Receipts listings on the New York Stock Exchange.

In addition to headquarters in Melbourne and London, BHP Billiton has corporate centres in Johannesburg, South Africa and Houston, USA.

Organisation of BHP Billiton is designed around Customer Sector Groups (CSGs), which are focused on customers, rather than operations. These CSGs are supported by finance, development, legal and marketing (including transport and logistics) functions. BHP Billiton has the following CSGs: Aluminium; Base Metals; Diamonds and Specialty Products; Energy Coal; Iron Ore; Manganese; Metallurgical Coal; Petroleum; Stainless Steel Materials.

The Diamonds and Specialty Products group encompasses Diamonds and Titanium Minerals. The cornerstone of BHP Billiton’s Diamonds business is the EKATI Diamond Mine, of which where BHP Billiton has 80% share. EKATI is located in the Canada’s Northwest Territories and produces approximately four million carats of rough diamonds annually. Annual sales from EKATI (including minority shares) represent around three per cent of current world rough diamond supply by weight and six per cent by value.
Most of rough mined is sold to international diamond buyers through BHP’s Antwerp sales office. BHP Billiton sells up to 10 per cent of our rough diamonds to two Canadian manufacturers, and sells both polished and rough diamonds directly to jewellers. BHP Billiton sells polished diamonds, manufactured through contract polishing arrangements, through its CanadaMark and AURIAS brands.

Official website: www.bhpbilliton.com