BHP Xplor 2026 cohort expansion: key exploration workflow notes for geoscientists
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell

First reported on International Mining – News
30 Second Briefing
BHP has expanded its Xplor accelerator to its largest cohort yet, selecting 10 early-stage exploration and technology companies for the 2026 intake in the programme’s fourth year. The group combines junior explorers, geoscience organisations and tech teams aimed at covering the full “discovery system”, from targeting through to resource definition. For geoscientists and project developers, the move signals stronger backing for early-stage concepts and integrated data-driven exploration workflows under a major’s umbrella.
Technical Brief
- Cohort composition mixes junior explorers with geoscience service groups and software/technology teams rather than pure explorers.
Our Take
BHP’s decision to expand the 2026 BHP Xplor cohort to 10 companies lines up with our recent coverage of the group embedding AI into exploration workflows, suggesting this intake is likely to be a key testbed for data-driven targeting rather than just a funding vehicle.
Across the 843 Mining stories in our database, BHP features heavily in copper and critical minerals narratives, so a larger Xplor program signals that the major is trying to secure earlier-stage optionality rather than relying solely on brownfield expansions in those commodities.
With BHP also under scrutiny in recent metallurgical coal and climate-focused pieces, scaling Xplor gives it a relatively low-capex way to showcase alignment with future-facing resources and technologies without immediately committing to large new mine builds.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
Related Articles
Related Industries & Products
Mining
Geotechnical software solutions for mining operations including CMRR analysis, hydrogeological testing, and data management.
CMRR-io
Streamline coal mine roof stability assessments with our cloud-based CMRR software featuring automated calculations, multi-scenario analysis, and collaborative workflows.
HYDROGEO-io
Comprehensive hydrogeological testing platform for managing, analysing, and reporting on packer tests, lugeon values, and hydraulic conductivity assessments.
GEODB-io
Centralised geotechnical data management solution for storing, accessing, and analysing all your site investigation and material testing data.