Oct 21 (Reuters) - BHP Group's ( BHP ) first-quarter

iron ore output came in a little lower than estimates on

Tuesday, as planned maintenance, including rebuilding of a piece

of equipment at Port Hedland, weighed on production at its

Western Australian operations.

The world's largest listed miner said iron ore production

from its Western Australia mine operations on a 100% basis was

70.2 million metric tonnes (Mt) in the three months ended

September 30, compared with a Visible Alpha consensus estimate

of 71.55 Mt.

BHP had recorded iron ore output from its Western Australian

operations of 71.6 Mt a year earlier.

Sales from the operations were broadly in line with the

prior year, with BHP reporting a 5% sales rise of higher-value

lump.

The major rebuild of Car Dumper 3 at Port Hedland, which

reduced volumes by 4.3 million tonnes on a 100% basis, was

completed about 8% ahead of schedule, BHP said.

Car Dumper 3 is a massive machine that unloads iron ore from

trains for export and has been rebuilt to extend its life, boost

reliability, and keep operations running smoothly after years of

heavy use.

BHP kept its fiscal 2026 output forecast for Western

Australia iron ore unchanged at between 284 Mt and 296 Mt.

The group's total copper production for the quarter gained

4% to 493.6 kilo tons and the company kept its 2026 output

estimates unchanged.

BHP added that both stages of Canada's Jansen potash

project were making solid progress, with Stage 1 being 73%

complete and on track to start production in 2027. The Stage 2

has reached 13% completion.