According to [1], Newmont’s Boddington mine operates within the Saddleback greenstone belt in Western Australia. A large gold and copper mine, Boddington is located 16 km from the rural farming town of Boddington and 130 km from Western Australia’s capital city, Perth. Boddington was a three-way joint venture between Newmont, AngloGold Ashanti and Newcrest. In 2009, Newmont purchased AngloGold Ashanti’s shares to become the sole owner of Boddington. Commercial production began in 2009, and in March 2011 the operation produced its first 1 million ounces of gold.
Boddington produces between 700,000 and 800,000 ounces of gold each year, along with significant amounts of copper concentrate, which generally ranges from 150,000 to 200,000 tonnes annually. Mining is carried out using conventional open-pit truck-and-shovel methods, and the ore is processed through crushing, grinding, flotation, and a carbon-in-leach circuit that produces both copper-gold concentrate and gold doré. The deposit is located in the Saddleback Greenstone Belt within the Yilgarn Craton, and the ore is mainly hosted in dolerite and volcanic rocks containing disseminated pyrite, chalcopyrite, and gold.
The mine is also notable for being one of the first large gold operations in the world to introduce a fully autonomous haul truck fleet. The Komatsu 930E trucks at Boddington operate under autonomous haulage systems, making the site a leader in mining innovation and technology. This use of automation improves safety, productivity, and efficiency, and it reflects Newmont’s strategy of modernizing its operations globally.
Economically, Boddington is a cornerstone of the mining sector in Western Australia. It provides significant royalties to the state, creates thousands of direct and indirect jobs, and contributes heavily to regional development. For Newmont, it represents a major source of both gold and copper within its global portfolio.
Reference
[1] “Boddington – Australia | Newmont Corporation – Operations & Projects.” Accessed: Sept. 18, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://operations.newmont.com/australia/boddington
