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Rio Tinto and Partners to Invest $733 Million in Pilbara Iron Ore Project

Rio Tinto announced on Tuesday that it, along with joint venture partners Mitsui Iron Ore & Nippon Steel, will invest $733 Million to develop new ore deposits in the West Angelas Hub of Western Australia's Pilbara Region.

Rio Tinto said that the West Angelas project, for which it will contribute $389 millions, will maintain the hub’s annual production capability at 35 million tonne, and extend mining operations by several years.

Around 600 full-time jobs will be created during construction, and around 950 will remain after the project is operational. The autonomous trucking of ore will begin in 2027.

Rio Mining said the project is part of a series of iron ore replacement developments in Pilbara that support a total production capacity of 130 million tonnes annually.

Since 2002, the West Angelas Hub has been an important part of Rio Tinto’s operations. Rio Tinto has also begun a feasibility study for Rhodes Ridge. The project is expected to have an initial capacity up to 40 millions tonnes per year and the first ore in 2030.

Rio Tinto shares rose by 0.9% at A$124.72 to outperform the benchmark index which was down 0.1% as of 2329 GMT.

In partnership with China Baowu Steel Group the miner has also opened the Western Range Iron Ore Mine, worth $2 billion. The aim is to sustain production from the Paraburdoo hub of the Pilbara region for at least two decades. (Reporting from Bengaluru by Roshan Thomas; Editing by Shailesh Kumar)

(source: Reuters)