{"id":20226,"date":"2025-10-04T15:03:28","date_gmt":"2025-10-04T15:03:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/04\/bhps-2026-xplor-critical-minerals-accelerator-program-calls-for-applications\/"},"modified":"2025-10-04T15:03:28","modified_gmt":"2025-10-04T15:03:28","slug":"bhps-2026-xplor-critical-minerals-accelerator-program-calls-for-applications","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/04\/bhps-2026-xplor-critical-minerals-accelerator-program-calls-for-applications\/","title":{"rendered":"BHP\u2019s 2026 Xplor Critical Minerals Accelerator Program Calls for Applications"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mining giant BHP (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BHP)<\/strong><strong> has begun accepting applications for the 2026 edition of its Xplor Critical Minerals Accelerator Program.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Now in its fourth edition, Xplor currently holds an alumni network of 21 companies, including the likes of Cobre (ASX:CBE)<a href=\"https:\/\/investingnews.com\/stocks\/asx-cbe\/cobre-limited\/\" target=\"_self\"><\/a> and Hamelin Gold (ASX:HMG).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cXplor has quickly become a recognised pathway for early-stage explorers who want to scale faster and think more boldly,\u201d said BHP Group Exploration Officer Tim O\u2019Connor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe program provides not only capital, but access to the knowledge, networks, and technical depth that can fundamentally change the trajectory of a company,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>As in previous cohorts, Xplor 2026 participants can receive up to US$500,000 in equity-free funding, mentorship and access to BHP\u2019s global network of suppliers and service providers. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Early-stage explorers are encouraged to apply, as long as they are<strong> \u201c<\/strong>dedicated to uncovering new sources of critical minerals essential for a sustainable future.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In 2025, eight junior mining companies targeting copper and other critical minerals were selected by BHP. These included Canadian company Viridian Metals (CSE:VRDN) and ASX-listed German company GreenX Metals (ASX:GRX,LSE:GRX).<\/p>\n<p>Current participant Electrum Discovery (TSXV:ELY,OTC:ELDCF)<a href=\"https:\/\/investingnews.com\/stock-information\/?symbol=ely:cc\" target=\"_self\"><\/a> said that being part of BHP Xplor is invaluable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe program has given us access to expertise and resources that have helped sharpen our strategy and move our projects forward more quickly,\u201d said CEO Elena Clarici.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt has also opened doors to networks and opportunities that would have been much harder to access on our own. Xplor is already making a real difference in how we grow as a company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Xplor was launched in 2022 to assist companies in accelerating exploration opportunities and developing new critical minerals sources. It is split into three tracks: technical readiness, business readiness and operations readiness.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs the world\u2019s demand for critical minerals intensifies, building strong partnerships between majors and juniors will be essential,\u201d O\u2019Connor added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cXplor is about more than accelerating exploration projects, it\u2019s about shaping a new way of working together to unlock the resources needed for the future.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>The deadline for 2026 submissions is October 15, 11:59 PM AEST.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div>This post appeared first on investingnews.com<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mining giant BHP (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BHP) has begun accepting applications for the 2026 edition of its Xplor&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20227,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20226","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20226\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}