3.2 Our strategy

Our objective as a corporation is to create long-term shareholder value through the discovery, development and conversion of natural resources, and the provision of innovative customer and market-focused solutions.

To achieve this we aim to own and operate a portfolio of upstream, large, long-life, low-cost, expandable, export-oriented assets across a diversified geographic and commodity base, and pursue growth opportunities consistent with our core skills by:

  • discovering resources through our Exploration activities
  • developing and converting them in our CSGs
  • developing customer and market-focused solutions through our Marketing arm
  • adding shareholder value beyond the capacity of these groups through the activities of the Group Functions

In pursuing our objective, we are guided by our commitment to safety, simplicity and accountability.

Our overriding commitment is to safety: ensuring the safety of our people, respecting our environment and the communities in which we work. This commitment transcends everything we do and guides every aspect of our work.

Our commitment to simplicity and accountability allows us to focus on the most important drivers of value while empowering our people to operate within their authority and make a difference. Our objective and commitments are pursued through the six strategic drivers of our strategy:

  • People — the foundation of our business is our people. We require people to find resources, develop those resources, operate the businesses that produce our products, and then deliver that product to our customers. Talented and motivated people are our most precious resource.
  • Licence to operate — we aim to ensure that the communities in which we operate value our citizenship. Licence to operate means win-win relationships and partnerships. This includes a central focus on health, safety, environment and the community, and making a positive difference to our host communities.
  • World-class assets — our world-class assets provide the cash flows that are required to build new projects, to contribute to the economies of the countries in which we operate, to meet our obligations to our employees, suppliers and partners, and ultimately to pay dividends to our shareholders. We maintain high-quality assets by managing them in the most effective and efficient way.
  • Financial strength and discipline — we have a solid ‘A’ credit rating, which balances financial flexibility with the cost of finance. Our capital management program has three priorities:
    • To reinvest in our extensive pipeline of world-class projects that carry attractive rates of return regardless of the economic climate.
    • To ensure a solid balance sheet.
    • To return excess capital to shareholders.
  • Project pipeline — we are focused on delivering an enhanced resource endowment to underpin future generations of growth. We have an abundance of tier one resources in stable countries that provide us with a unique set of options to deliver brownfield growth.
  • Growth options — we use exploration, technology and our global footprint to look beyond our current pipeline to secure a foundation of growth for future generations. We pursue growth options in several ways — covering the range from extending existing operations to new projects in emerging regions, through exploration, technology and, on occasion, merger and acquisition activity.