Commercial Leader | Major Projects | Copper South Australia

BHP Group; South Australia; On-site; AUD 260,000 - 380,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee share program

Flexible working options

Job summary

BHP is seeking a Commercial Leader for a major copper project in South Australia. You will lead the Owner's commercial function for a mega-capital project, oversee governance and commercial outcomes across the EPCM partner and major contractors, and drive value and risk management across the project lifecycle.

As a senior commercial leader, you will develop contracting strategies, manage a team of 5–6 direct reports, and partner with Finance, Legal and Project Leadership to achieve business

Qualifications

• Tertiary qualifications in a relevant discipline.

Responsibilities

• Provide commercial leadership for a multi-billion-dollar project.

Skills

Team leadership

Contract management

EPCM contracts

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business/Engineering/related field

Job description

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Commercial Leader | Major Projects | Copper South Australia

Date: 14 Oct 2026

Job Country: Australia

Job State/Province: South Australia

About BHP

At BHP we support our people to grow, learn, develop their skills and reach their potential. With a global portfolio of operations, we offer a diverse and inclusive environment with extraordinary career opportunities. Our strategy is to focus on creating a safe work environment where our employees feel strongly connected to our values and objectives, and where the capability of our people is key to our success.

Come and be a part of this success.

About the Role

Copper South Australia has set significant aspirational targets to increase production through a series of multi-billion-dollar project investments. This role provides overall commercial leadership for a mega capital project ($1Bn+) and is a key member of the Project Leadership Team accountable for commercial outcomes, governance, value delivery and risk management across the project lifecycle.

As the Commercial Leader (Major Projects), you will lead the Owner's commercial function for a mega-project, managing a team of 5-6 direct reports and overseeing the commercial performance, governance and contractual outcomes of the EPCM partner and all major contractors.

Core Responsibilities

• Provide commercial leadership and accountability for a multi-billion-dollar capital project.
• Lead and develop an Owner's Commercial Team comprising 5-6 direct reports.
• Develop and execute project contracting, procurement and commercial strategies.
• Manage the commercial relationship, performance and governance of the EPCM contractor.
• Lead contract management, change management, claims management and dispute resolution.
• Oversee major package procurement and contractor administration activities.
• Manage Indigenous contracting and social value programs.
• Provide commercial input to project governance, approvals and investment decisions.

In This Role You Will

• Lead the commercial interface between the Owner's Team and EPCM partner.
• Establish governance frameworks, performance metrics and commercial assurance processes for the EPCM contractor.
• Ensure alignment between project objectives, commercial strategies and delivery outcomes.
• Provide leadership, coaching and capability development to the commercial team.
• Drive contractor performance, value optimisation and risk management initiatives.
• Partner with Project Controls, Finance, Legal and Project Leadership to achieve business objectives.

Accountabilities

• Accountable for commercial leadership and governance of a mega-project.
• Primary commercial advisor to the Project Director and Project Leadership Team.
• Accountable for procurement, contracting and commercial management strategies.
• Manage EPCM contract performance, incentives, governance and outcomes.
• Lead major commercial negotiations and complex contractor relationships.
• Ensure robust management of claims, disputes, variations and commercial risk.
• Drive project value improvement and cost optimisation initiatives.
• Lead implementation of commercial systems, processes and reporting frameworks.
• Maintain executive stakeholder relationships across Project, Commercial, Finance and Operations functions.
• Drive team performance against business plan objectives and KPIs.
• Some site travel as required.

About You

You will be a senior commercial leader with extensive experience leading commercial functions on major and mega-projects, preferably within Owner-led delivery organisations and complex EPCM execution environments.

• Tertiary qualifications in Business, Construction Management, Quantity Surveying, Law, Commerce, Engineering or related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience leading commercial teams on multi-billion-dollar projects.
• Proven experience managing EPCM contracts and delivery models.
• Extensive knowledge of EPC, EPCM, alliance, reimbursable and incentive-based commercial models.
• Experience in claims, disputes, commercial risk and contractor performance management.Experience as a member of a Project Leadership Team.
• Strong executive stakeholder management, influencing and negotiation capability.
• Previous major construction project and site experience.
• Build, lead and develop a high-performing Owner's Team commercial function.
• Lead, coach and mentor 5-6 direct reports.
• Develop succession capability and commercial excellence.
• Promote a collaborative culture across Owner, EPCM and contractor organisations.

About Our Process

At BHP, we are committed to employing individuals who align with the BHP Charter Values and meet the requirements of the role. As part of the recruitment process, there are a number of checks which may be conducted to demonstrate applicants suitability for a role including police / criminal background checks, medical, drug and alcohol testing, due diligence checks, right to work checks, and/or reference checks.

If you are already employed directly by BHP, please log in using your BHP email address or apply via our internal jobs portal.

Supporting a Diverse Workforce

The size, stability and magnitude of our business not only provides significant opportunity for professional development, but also attractive salary packages with performance-based bonuses and a best-in-class employee share program. We know there are many aspects of our employees' lives that are important, and work is only one of these, so we offer benefits to enable your work to fit with your life. These benefits include flexible working options, a generous paid parental leave policy, other extended leave entitlements and parent rooms.

At BHP, we know that we are strengthened by diversity. We are an Equal Opportunity employer that is committed to making BHP a safe and inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive and be at their best every day. We are focused on creating a workforce that’s more diverse and represents the communities where we work and live. providing a work environment in which everyone is included, treated fairly and with respect.We are an Equal Opportunity employer and recognise that true diversity includesgender,age, race, disability status, sexual orientation, religion, neurodiversity, education levels, and many more aspects of your identity.

BHP is committed to providing a recruitment process that is fair, equitable and accessible for all. If you have a disability, we know that it may be helpful for us to adjust our process to make it equitable for your individual situation. If you would like to reach out to someone about your situation and our recruitment process, please email us at [e-mail].