BHP says gradually restarting Yandi iron ore mine

SYDNEY (Reuters) - BHP Billiton Ltd (BHP.AX)(BLT.L) said on Tuesday it was gradually restarting its Yandi iron ore mine in Australia five days after the death of a worker halted operations.

The mine, which produced 40 million tonnes of iron ore last year, is the last of BHP's iron ore mines to resume operations following the death last Thursday. It was the second fatality at the mine in 10 days.

"Yandi is gradually restarting production from this afternoon as we complete safety briefings with individual employees," a BHP spokeswoman said in an email to Reuters.

BHP's other Australian mines, which were halted temporarily after the death, were restarted on Saturday. The Yandi lode, remained shut pending investigations into the death.

The Yandi mine, 500 km (310 miles) from the western coast of Australia in the Pilbara district, is central to BHP's iron ore business, accounting for almost half of the 91 million tonnes of iron ore -- roughly 10 percent of the globally traded market -- that BHP mined in Australia last year.

The traded market for iron ore is sensitive to any disruptions to supply amid a global shortage brought on by growing orders from Asian steel makers.

But China, highly dependent on Australian ore, is in a better position to weather disruptions than it was earlier this year, with some 60 million tonnes of ore -- roughly one month's consumption -- stockpiled in ports.

BHP is the world's third-largest supplier of iron ore, after Brazil's Vale (VALE5.SA) and Rio Tinto (RIO.AX)(RIO.L). (Reporting by James Regan, Editing by Jacqueline Wong)