Indigenous Civil Contractors at Billiard South.

Service Requirements at Billiard South

Civil works scoping for an open cut iron ore operation in the West Pilbara Mineral Field demands Indigenous civil contractors with demonstrated capability across earthworks, haul road construction and maintenance, drainage infrastructure, and site civil upgrades in Channel Iron Deposit terrain. The CID geology at Billiard South — characterised by unconsolidated alluvial material requiring precise cut-and-fill management — places specific demands on civil contractors that differ materially from hard-rock open pit environments. Hamersley Iron – Yandi Pty Limited (subsidiary of Rio Tinto Iron Ore) operates under a FIFO access model via Paraburdoo or Tom Price aerodrome, with haul road integration into the Hamersley Iron rail corridor; civil scope must account for the interface between active haul corridors and construction zones. The site's dewatering infrastructure — including bore installations and a large-diameter transfer main — creates civil interface obligations that contractors must be scoped to manage safely alongside earthworks activities. Scope documentation should specify demonstrated civil construction capability in CID or analogous unconsolidated iron ore terrain as a minimum performance threshold.

• Earthworks and civil construction experience: Minimum 3 years of continuous civil contracting on open cut iron ore or analogous Pilbara mining operations, with at least 2 completed projects involving haul road construction or drainage infrastructure exceeding 500 metres in length — evidenced by project references and completion certificates submitted with tender response.
• Indigenous business credentials: Contractor must hold current Supply Nation registration or equivalent First Nations business certification, with a minimum 51% Indigenous ownership structure verified by certification body documentation dated within the last 12 months.
• Heat-environment civil works capability: Demonstrated civil works delivery in sustained ambient temperatures of 45°C, with documented heat management procedures (work-rest regimes, hydration protocols, plant heat-rating specifications) drawn from comparable Pilbara operations within the last 5 years — submitted as a standalone HSE annex to the tender response.

Site-Specific Operational Constraints

Conditions procurement must communicate to all bidders in tender documentation for Billiard South.

• Environment: Sustained summer ambient of 45°C, with peak recorded temperatures reaching 48°C, imposes mandatory heat-rated plant specifications and enforced civil works scheduling windows. Pilbara wet season (November–April) introduces flash flooding risk across low-lying CID terrain, requiring civil contractors to carry wet-weather contingency plans and drainage-ready equipment configurations.
• Logistics: Billiard South sits approximately 1,071 km from Perth by road; the nearest service hub is Newman (~75 km). All civil plant, materials, and personnel must be mobilised via Newman or air-freighted through Paraburdoo or Tom Price aerodrome. Heavy civil plant transport requires pre-approved haul route permits on the Hamersley Iron road network — confirm permit lead times with site logistics before RFQ issue.
• Response SLA: For scheduled civil works packages, a 12–24 hour mobilisation envelope from Newman is the baseline; for emergency civil interventions (e.g. haul road failure, drainage breach), a 4-hour call-out response from pre-positioned Newman resources is required and must be documented in the contractor's mobilisation plan.
• Roster: All personnel must operate on FIFO rosters compatible with Paraburdoo or Tom Price aerodrome flight schedules. Minimum crew configurations must sustain civil works continuity across standard 8/6 or 14/7 roster patterns without reliance on drive-in access from Perth.
• Camp/facilities: Contractors must confirm self-sufficiency for accommodation and messing, or demonstrate prior arrangement with site camp facilities. No assumption of site-provided accommodation is to be made in bid pricing; camp access arrangements must be confirmed with Hamersley Iron – Yandi Pty Limited (subsidiary of Rio Tinto Iron Ore) site management prior to tender submission.

Contractor Capability Checklist

Minimum evaluation criteria for shortlisting Indigenous Civil Contractors at Billiard South. Each criterion must be verifiable via documentation submitted with tender response.

• Technical certifications: Relevant civil construction licences under the Building Services (Registration) Act 2011 (WA); earthmoving plant operator competencies aligned to AS 2550 series where applicable; drainage and dewatering civil interface works to be evidenced by prior project scope documentation.
• Personnel tickets: All plant operators must hold current WA Construction Induction (White Card); supervisors must hold a valid Site Senior Executive or equivalent surface mine site competency; any civil works interfacing with the bore or transfer main infrastructure requires personnel with confined space and isolation/lockout-tagout (LOTO) certification.
• Mobilisation SLA: Documented evidence of 12–24 hour mobilisation capability from Newman or equivalent Pilbara hub, drawn from at least one comparable remote iron ore civil project completed within the last 3 years — include project name, location, and client contact for verification.
• Public Liability insurance: Minimum AUD $20M per occurrence (Certificate of Currency required with tender submission).
• Professional Indemnity: Minimum AUD $10M aggregate where civil scope includes design input, drainage engineering advice, or haul road alignment specification.
• Workers Compensation: Full statutory cover under WA law (WorkCover WA — Injury Management Plan required and must be submitted as a tender annex).
• Site exposure: Minimum 24 months of civil contracting exposure on open cut iron ore operations in the Pilbara, specifically including earthworks or infrastructure works in CID or alluvial terrain — commodity type and extraction method must be stated in project reference sheets.
• Safety systems: Documented HSE management system certified to ISO 45001 or equivalent; ICAM-trained incident investigation capability required given Rio Tinto's Critical Risk Management Program obligations; Rio Tinto HSE Framework compliance (riotinto.com/sustainability) must be acknowledged in writing within the tender response.

Regulatory & HSE Framework

All civil contracting activity at Billiard South is governed by the Work Health and Safety Act 2020 (WA) and the Work Health and Safety (Mines) Regulations 2022 (WA), administered by WorkSafe WA. Indigenous civil contractors operating on site must comply with Rio Tinto's HSEC Standards and Critical Risk Management Program, which impose specific controls over ground disturbance, plant-pedestrian interaction, and civil works in proximity to active mining infrastructure. Hamersley Iron – Yandi Pty Limited (subsidiary of Rio Tinto Iron Ore) requires all contractors to complete site-specific induction procedures before any mobilisation to site; induction completion records must be retained and available for audit. Supplier registration and prequalification is managed through the Avetta platform in conjunction with the Rio Tinto Supplier Portal — portal registration is mandatory prior to RFQ participation, and procurement must confirm that prospective contractors hold active Avetta profiles before shortlisting proceeds.

Sourcing Qualified Contractors

No confirmed tender activity for Indigenous civil works at Billiard South is on file at the time of this briefing. The regional pool of Indigenous civil contractors active in the Pilbara numbers at least five listed entities according to the WA Mining Index, with capacity concentrated around Newman and the broader East Pilbara corridor — a geographic alignment that suits Billiard South's ~75 km proximity to Newman. Contractors with confirmed regional exposure include Carey Group Holdings and Piening Indigenous Services (noted as market reference only, not endorsement); Carey Group Holdings holds Rio Tinto Iron Ore prequalification, which reduces onboarding lead time materially. Procurement teams engaging this market must allow a minimum of 6–8 weeks for Avetta prequalification, Rio Tinto Supplier Portal registration, and site-specific induction processing before civil works mobilisation can commence. RFQ documentation should explicitly require Supply Nation or equivalent First Nations certification as a pass/fail gateway criterion, ensuring the Indigenous civil contractor mandate is enforced at shortlist stage rather than post-award.