5 December 2002 Number: 60/02 BHP BILLITON ANNOUNCES HYDROCARBON DISCOVERY WITH VORTEX-1 WELL IN DEEPWATER GULF OF MEXICO BHP Billiton today announced that it has made a natural gas discovery at the exploratory well on its Vortex prospect in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. Drilling on Vortex-1 began September 9, 2002, in Atwater Valley Block 261 in water depths of approximately 8,344 feet using the drillship Deepwater Millennium. In addition to the initial well, a sidetrack was drilled 2,900 feet west of the #1 well to a total depth of 19,330 feet. BHP Billiton holds a one-third interest and is operator of the Vortex prospect, with partners Kerr-McGee Corp. and Ocean Energy, Inc. each also holding a one-third interest. Further information can be found on our Internet site: http://www.bhpbilliton.com Australia Andrew Nairn, Investor Relations Tel: +61 3 9609 3952 Mobile: +61 408 313 259 mailto:Andrew.W.Nairn@bhpbilliton.com Tracey Whitehead, Media Relations Tel: +61 3 9609 4202 Mobile: +61 419 404 978 mailto:Tracey.Whitehead@bhpbilliton.com United States Francis McAllister, Investor Relations Tel: +1 713 961 8625 Mobile: +1 713 480 3699 mailto:Francis.R.McAllister@bhpbilliton.com United Kingdom Mark Lidiard, Investor & Media Relations Tel: +44 20 7747 3956 mailto:Mark.T.Lidiard@bhpbilliton.com South Africa Michael Campbell, Investor & Media Relations Tel: +27 11 376 3360 Mobile: +27 82 458 2587 mailto:Michael.J.Campbell@bhpbilliton.com