By Nathan Richardson

October 15, 2018 - BHP has signed a five-year, A$1.2 billion ($853 million) mining services contract with CIMIC Group's Thiess for its giant Mt Arthur thermal coal operation in Australia's Hunter Valley, CIMIC announced Monday.

"This new five-year contract builds on Thiess' existing agreement and expands the scope of Thiess' operations to include additional services as mine operator of the southern end of the Mt Arthur Coal operations (Ayredale and Roxburgh pits)," CIMIC said in a statement of Thiess, its global mining services provider arm.

"Under the new contract Thiess will perform mine design, planning and scheduling services, drill and blast operations, overburden removal and coal mining,' it added.

Mt Arthur in fiscal 2017-18 (July-June) sold 18.02 million mt of thermal coal, up from 17.90 million mt the year before. Of the total, 16.65 million mt was earmarked for export and 1.38 million mt for domestic sale, according to BHP's operational review released in July.

Earlier in the year, an Australian coal market analyst had told S&P Global Platts that the product cost for export coal at Mt Arthur was in the range of $34-$43/mt in 2017. The mine exports via Newcastle port.

BHP was not available for immediate comment on its long term plans for the mine. There has been some market speculation that it has been considering selling it.