Number 18/08

Marius Kloppers, Chief Executive Officer of BHP Billiton, spoke at the Merrill Lynch Global Mining conference in Florida on Tuesday, 13 May 2008. During his presentation, he reviewed BHP Billiton’s strategy of focussing on tier 1, low-cost and long-life assets. He also highlighted the Group’s scale and diversification as well as its focus on high margin commodities both in its current production profile and future development pipeline.

As part of his speech, he went on to outline BHP Billiton’s superior potential for growth relative to Rio Tinto. Over the period between 2007 and 2012, BHP Billiton’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is expected to be 6.9 per cent on a copper equivalent volume basis. On a comparable basis, Rio Tinto is expected to deliver a CAGR of around 6 per cent. More importantly BHP Billiton’s growth is driven by higher margin commodities such as petroleum and iron ore.

For further information please refer to Marius Kloppers' presentation at the Merrill Lynch Global Mining conference.

For further information please contact:

Australia
Samantha Evans, Media Relations
Tel: +61 3 9609 2898  Mobile: +61 400 693 915
email: Samantha.Evans@bhpbilliton.com

Leng Lau, Investor Relations
Tel: +61 3 9609 4202  Mobile: +61 403 533 706
email: Leng.Y.Lau @bhpbilliton.com

United Kingdom & South Africa
Andre Liebenberg, Investor Relations
Tel: +44 20 7802 4131  Mobile: +44 7920 236 974
email: Andre.Liebenberg@bhpbilliton.com

Illtud Harri, Media Relations
Tel: +44 20 7802 4195  Mobile: +44 7920 237 246
email: Illtud.Harri@bhpbilliton.com

United States
Tracey Whitehead, Investor & Media Relations
Tel: US +1 713 599 6100 or UK +44 20 7802 4031
Mobile: +44 7917 648 093
email: Tracey.Whitehead@bhpbilliton.com