Billiton History
Billiton has roots that go back as far as 1860.
Prior to its merger with natural resources company BHP, Billiton was a global leader in the metals and mining sector, and a major producer of aluminium and alumina, chrome and manganese ores and alloys, steaming coal, nickel and titanium minerals. Billiton also developed a substantial and growing copper portfolio.
Shareholder growth was derived from a large portfolio of assets, diversified by commodity and by country, together with Billiton's quality operations and managerial acumen.
Headquartered in London, Billiton employed some 30,000 people worldwide, with major operations and development projects in Australia, North and South America, and southern Africa.
For more information, see the text below, view a selection of historical milestones by downloading Billiton's chronology (in PDF format, 458kb), or access our interactive timeline from the icon on the right.
Brief history of Billiton
Billiton's origins stretch back to 29 September 1860, when the articles of association were approved by a meeting of shareholders in the Het Groot Keizerhof hotel in The Hague, Netherlands.
Two months later, the company acquired the concession to a tin-rich island in the Indonesian archipelago near Sumatra. The island was called Billiton (now Belitung), hence the name.
Billiton's initial business forays included tin and lead smelting in The Netherlands, followed in the 1940s by bauxite mining in Indonesia and Suriname. In 1970, the Royal Dutch/Shell group of companies acquired Billiton and accelerated the scope of progress of this growth.
In 1997, Billiton Plc became a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
Throughout the 1990s and beyond, Billiton experienced considerable growth. Its portfolio included aluminium smelters in South Africa and Mozambique, nickel operations in Australia and Colombia, base metals mines in South America, Canada and South Africa, coal mines in Australia, Colombia and South Africa, as well as interests in operations in Brazil, Suriname, Australia (aluminium) and South Africa (titanium minerals and steel and ferroalloys).
