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
As Principal Ventilation Engineer (RCoE), you will provide enterprise-wide technical leadership and subject-matter expertise to uplift mine planning and mine ventilation outcomes across BHP’s portfolio. You will shape how mine planning and mine ventilation is applied as an integrating discipline—supporting asset optionality, capital allocation, and long-term value—through strong governance, standards, and economically rigorous planning practices that are consistent, risk-aware, and aligned to enterprise priorities.
Operating as a senior second-line technical leader, you will enable confident, high-quality decision making through independent assurance, governance oversight, and trusted technical advice across all planning horizons. You will partner closely with asset teams, studies teams, Practice Leads, and senior leaders to strengthen decision quality, manage mine planning risk and uncertainty, drive continuous improvement, and build sustainable mine planning and mine ventilation capability aligned to BHP’s future growth agenda.
Key Responsibilities
- Provide technical leadership for mine planning and mine ventilation, partnering with asset and functional leaders to resolve material mine planning and mine ventilation issues, shape enterprise-wide solutions, and uplift planning outcomes across the portfolio.
- Execute second-line assurance for mine planning and mine ventilation, providing authoritative oversight of global standards, guidelines, Independent Peer Reviews, and alignment with BHP’s risk management and governance framework.
- Lead and deliver high-value initiatives that materially improve mine planning and mine ventilation capability, standards, and business performance.
- Represent BHP externally as an industry leader in mine planning and mine ventilation, contributing to thought leadership, professional engagement, and the advancement of leading practice.
About You
You are a people-focused technical leader with deep mine planning experience and a strong track record of influencing outcomes in complex environments. You bring:
- Degree qualified mining engineer (Bachelor of Mining or Mechanical Engineering- or equivalent).
- A minimum of 10 years’ experience in mine planning and mine ventilation.
- Deep technical expertise in mine planning and mine ventilation as an integrated discipline, with experience across all planning horizons.
- Proven ability to lead and influence diverse, highly skilled mine planning and mine ventilation professionals, working collaboratively across functions, geographies, and organisational boundaries, and communicating complex issues clearly to drive positive change.
- A strong risk, governance, and decision-quality mindset, with experience operating in second-line assurance, governance, or independent review environments (desirable).
- Evidence of a strong commitment to continuous learning and professional development.
- Deep subject matter expertise in underground mine planning and mine ventilation.
- Operational experience in design and maintenance of ventilation systems.
- Operational experience in design and maintenance of broader mine services requirements.
- Advanced capability in ventilation modelling and performance interpretation (VentSIM or equivalent).
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 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
[email protected].
