Australias’s largest iron ore producer, Rio Tinto, mined a near-record 332 million tonnes of the steelmaking ingredient in 2023 on the again of a brand new mine it plans to develop additional in 2024.
Rio Tinto chief government Jakob Stausholm mentioned complete manufacturing from the diversified world miner rose 3 per cent in 2023 reflecting the Gudai-Darri mine in Western Australia’s Pilbara hitting full capability and the rollout of a brand new mine administration system.
Rio Tinto Gudai-Darri iron ore mine in WA’s Pilbara hit its nameplate manufacturing capability in 2023.Credit score: Carla Gottgens
The $4.7 billion funding hit a manufacturing fee of 43 million tonnes a yr inside 12 months of commissioning, serving to Rio’s iron ore exports attain the higher finish of steering the corporate gave traders for 2023.
The Anglo-Australian miner’s enterprise is dominated by delivery iron ore from the Pilbara to the metal mills of Asia, which accounted for nearly 70 per cent of its income in 2022, however final yr it lastly made substantial progress on creating an alternate in Africa.
Stausholm, talking on the discharge of Rio’s December quarter manufacturing outcomes on Tuesday, mentioned the Simandou iron ore challenge in Guinea – which Rio will contribute $6.2 billion to get first manufacturing in 2025 – was a “world-class” addition to the corporate’s portfolio.
Loading
In 2020, Rio Tinto destroyed 46,000-year-old Pilbara rock shelters in a mine blast. There have been fears of a repeat after one other blast dislodged rocks close to a registered cultural heritage website, however it afterwards discovered to be unhurt.
“We proceed to work arduous to remodel our tradition and to spend money on deep engagement and partnerships with conventional homeowners,” Stausholm mentioned.
Progress on the Decision Copper deposit within the US state of Arizona, co-owned with BHP, stays stalled by objections from some Native American teams about harm to a sacred space, Oak Flat.
