Principal Mine Optimisation Engineers | BMA

BHP; Moranbah; On-site; AUD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance-based bonuses

Employee share program

Flexible working options

Parental leave

Job summary

BHP is seeking a Principal Mine Optimisation Engineer for an on-site role in Australia’s Moranbah region. You will lead enterprise mining probabilistics, manage complex CPPM improvements, and ensure alignment with safety, budget and schedule on major mine sites.

Reporting to the Production Planning & Services Manager, you will guide mine planning governance, drive performance through PDCA cycles, and mentor teams to embed continuous learning and operational excellence across the site.

Qualifications

• Must have a degree in mining engineering and extensive open cut coal mining experience.
• Demonstrated practical operational leadership experience and supervisor qualifications on site.
• Strong systems thinking, with ability to balance safety, production and cost outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Maintain the EMP CPPM system and ensure its on‑site effectiveness.
• Lead CPPM improvement pipeline with stakeholders to balance improvement and BAU tasks.
• Monitor variability framework, buffers, and their relationships to control risk.
• Manage the site reconciliation framework and Mine Planning Governance Architecture.
• Coordinate inputs for the TUM, feed insights into QBR and budgeting discussions, and track KPI uptakes.

Skills

Supervisor on site

G2 competency

Operational leadership

Critical systems thinking

Data analytics

Problem solving

Open cut coal mining experience

Mine planning

Education

Mining Engineering Degree

Tools

BHP Operating System (BOS)

Reconciliation systems

Time Usage Model (TUM)

Value Driver Tree (VDT)

PDCA cycle

Job description

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.

About the Role

Enterprise Mining Probabilistics (EMP) Critical Path Project Management (CPPM) is a new and innovative approach to mine planning for stable, predictable business plan delivery. CPPM specifically centres on managing the site critical paths in execution using a project management approach to reduce variability and increase bottleneck performance, delivering stable mining operations for BMA. A key activity for this process is to sustain a closed loop learning cycle, through embedded Plan Do Check Act cycles.

We are seeking experienced and safety focused Principal Mine Optimisation Engineers to join our team at BMA. Reporting centrally to the Manager Production Planning & Services, you will be located on one of the BMA Mine Sites and responsible for the following for that site:

Key responsibilities:

• Maintaining the closed loop EMP CPPM system and its effectiveness on site
• Day-to-day project management of the CPPM improvement pipeline, working with CPPM Superintendent, Mine Planning Superintendent and Execution Superintendents to ensure balance between improvement and business as usual tasks is sustained
• Monitoring the variability framework, and the link between sources of variability, buffers to control the variability, and the relationship between them
• Monitoring and delivering the Reconciliation framework, linked to the Mine Planning Governance Architecture
• Maintain the TUM process on site, including coordinating inputs, facilitating review, and feeding information into the site QBR, outputs then feed as inputs into the SRF/Budget, and maintaining a view on the overall site improvement pipeline, linked to uplifts in KVD's for the TUM. This includes maintaining a site Key Value Driver tree for the bottleneck process(s)
• Provide technical guidance, development, and stewardship of EMP theory and team training and understanding
• Maintains a strong understanding of the Mine Plan, 90 Day Project Activity schedule, and operational execution on site
• Provide primary escalation point to CPPM & Mine Scheduling team on site to ensure alignment of operational value chain objectives, variability management and agreement of plans for execution
• Accountable for auditing implementation and improvement of the EMP Blueprint
• Monitors and manages CPPM effectiveness using PDCA cycle
• Monitors and manages plan performance to deliver results in line with safety standards, requirements, budget, and scope
• Sustain EMP in the Operation
• Lead and grow BHP Operating System (BOS) routines
• Understand and improve site safety health management systems as requested to ensure appropriate controls are in place or implemented to achieve an acceptable level of risk for CMWs at site

About You

You will bring your critical systems thinking to this role as well as your influencing skills and your genuine passion to promote a culture of diversity and inclusiveness. Your owner's mindset and focus on embedding continuous learning while maintaining safe operations will be key to your success in this role.

Must be:

• Degree qualified Engineer, preferably Mining
• Extensive experience in open cut coal mining operations

Additional skills/qualifications:

• Authorised as Supervisor on site and holds G2 competency
• Demonstrated practical operational leadership experience
• Strong critical and systems thinking skills, with the ability to balance safety, production and cost outcomes
• Experience in mine planning, and demonstrated experience building reconciliation systems in mine planning
• Highly skilled in problem solving (Root Cause Analysis)
• Experience in managing Open Cut Time Usage Models (TUM) and Value Driver Trees (VDT)
• High capability in data analytics, specifically seeking insights and transforming insights into actionable improvement plans, with the ability to influence those action plans at Manager level
• EMP Skills assessment score in line with Tactical / Short term Superintendent (or working towards)
• BHP Operating System experience is highly desirable in particular with leading and facilitating problem solves, and embedding improvement initiatives
• Demonstrated success in leading and managing projects from planning through to completion
• Strong ability to lead, coach, mentor, and transfer skills to operational and project teams

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.

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 includes gender, 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 *********@bhp.com.