[Ferro-Alloys.Com]Mining giant BHP Billiton admits some jobs are likely to go at its Nickel West operations in Western Australia.A report in The West Australian on Friday say 100 support staff had been made redundant on Thursday. But it's understood there may be a much smaller number of office-based redundancies and operational roles will not be affected.

BHP Billiton said the company was focusing on reducing overheads and other expenses in response to a continued rise in operational costs and falling commodity prices.

"We don't intend to provide any detail about specific adjustments either in Nickel West or elsewhere, but clearly there may be some impact on jobs in some areas," the company said in an emailed statement. "It is necessary for us to make changes in order to ensure our continued competitiveness. "This includes restructuring our functional support teams."

BHP Billiton said it would consult with every employee affected by the changes, including discussing options available to them. Some analysts have speculated that the company is preparing to sell its Nickel West business. BHP Billiton last week reported a fall in production at the Nickel West operations for the September quarter to 23,700 tonnes, down from 29,900 tonnes for the June quarter.

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