Iron-ore producers are trying to get all they can out of their iron-ore piñata ponies, against a background of concern that iron-ore prices may stay at lows of $70/t to $80/t for as long as three years. The overarching message of BHP Billiton, which this month hosted site tours of its Western Australian iron-ore assets, was that it would debottleneck faster than anticipated in order to drive unit costs lower than anticipated. Total seaborne iron-ore supply is set to increase by 140-million tons in the current calendar year and demand growth lag by 55-million tons, caused by moderating Chinese growth and the growing use of ferrous scrap.