Capability brochure

May 2013

About Rio Tinto

A global leader in mining,
metals and minerals

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Rio Tinto is a world leader in finding, mining and processing

the Earths mineral resources. We have the people, capabilities
and resources to supply a world hungry for metals and minerals.

Cover image
The contribution of
mining to modern
infrastructure and
urbanisation.
Above
In the heart of the Gobi
desert, Oyu Tolgoi is
set to be one of the
worlds top-five copper
producers once fully
developed.

From our diverse portfolio we supply the metals and

minerals that help the world to grow. Our products go
into the infrastructure of our towns and cities, into cars
and mobile phones, into healthcare and renewable
energy solutions and a myriad of other applications
that help fulfil vital consumer needs and improve
living standards.
We operate, and eventually close, our operations safely,
responsibly and sustainably. The diversity of our people
about 71,000 in more than 40 countries enriches the
blend of skills, experience and personalities that makes
us successful. By continually engaging with all our
stakeholders including communities, governments,
employees and investors we build relationships and
turn opportunity into advantage, solving business and
technical challenges, and contributing to societys
transition to sustainable development.

Rio Tintos interests are diverse both in geography

and product. Our businesses include open pit and
underground mines, mills, refineries, smelters and
power stations including a significant hydropower
portfolio as well as a number of research and service
facilities. Our major products are aluminium, copper,
diamonds, thermal and metallurgical coal, iron ore,
uranium, gold and industrial minerals (borates, titanium
dioxide and salt). We also own and operate infrastructure
that takes our products to our customers, including
railways, ports and ships.
We work in some of the worlds most difficult terrains
and climates. Our activities span the world: we are
strongly represented in Australia and North America
and also have significant businesses in Asia, Europe,
Africa and South America.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

We act ethically and responsibly

because its good for business
and it reflects the convictions
of our employees.

Our global presence, and our expertise in technology

and marketing, enables us to bring our customers the
right product, at the right quality, at the right time.
We act ethically and responsibly because its good for
business and it reflects the convictions of our employees.
Doing the right thing helps build a good reputation.
Having a good name ensures better access to the mineral,
financial and human resources we need to succeed. It also
creates better returns for our shareholders and gives our
employees more rewarding jobs.

The way we work, our global code of business conduct,

outlines our approach. It contains principles and
standards of conduct that reaffirm our commitment to
corporate responsibility and are inspired by our four core
values: accountability, respect, teamwork and integrity.

We work in some of the worlds most

difficult terrains and climates. We are
strongly represented in Australia and
North America and also have significant
businesses in Asia, Europe, Africa and
South America.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

History and origins

Rio Tintos predecessor companies The Rio Tinto
Company and The Consolidated Zinc Corporation were
formed in 1873 and 1905 respectively. The Rio Tinto
Company was formed in London to mine copper at
Rio Tinto in southern Spain. This first mine was based
on ancient workings that once supplied copper to the
Roman Empire. The name Rio Tinto comes from the
coloured river that flowed near this copper mine.
The Consolidated Zinc Corporation was incorporated to
treat zinc-bearing mine waste at Broken Hill, Australia.
The two companies merged in 1962 to form The RTZ
(Rio Tinto Zinc) Corporation. CRA (Conzinc Riotinto of
Australia) Limited was formed at the same time by the
merger of the companies Australian interests. RTZ
and CRA were unified through a dual listed companies
structure in 1995. In 1997, RTZ became Rio Tinto plc
and CRA became Rio Tinto Limited, together known
as the Rio Tinto Group.

May 2013

The Group has grown partly through the acquisition

of other businesses and most notably through the
acquisition of Alcan Inc. in 2007.
Rio Tinto has developed a global approach to business
that is drawn from the experience and commitment of
our component companies and individuals. We share
common values, policies, standards and principles, and
have benefited increasingly from sharing best practice
across the whole Group.
We have been in this business for 140 years and we
have a great heritage to be proud of.

Below
Cape Lambert port,
part of our world-class
iron ore operations in
the Pilbara, Western
Australia. Our expansion
plans will increase the
ports annual capacity
by more than 100
million tonnes by 2015.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Strategy
Rio Tintos objective is to maximise total shareholder
return by sustainably finding, developing, mining and
processing natural resources. Our strategy is to invest in
and operate large, long-term, expandable, low-cost mines
and businesses, driven by the quality of each opportunity
in the most attractive industry sectors. It is a strategy
that has served us well over many years, and we have
full confidence that it will continue to do so in the future.

Structure and management

The Rio Tinto Group combines Rio Tinto plc, which
is listed on the London and New York Stock Exchange
and headquartered in London, and Rio Tinto Limited,
which is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

We will deliver value for shareholders by consistently

executing our strategy in every market, in all of our
businesses. We have a focus on reducing costs, delivering
our approved growth projects, reshaping our portfolio and
building a more accountable business.

Rio Tinto comprises five principal product groups

Aluminium, Copper, Diamonds & Minerals, Energy
and Iron Ore supported by our Technology
& Innovation and Exploration groups.

The Group consists of wholly and partly owned

subsidiaries, jointly controlled assets, jointly controlled
entities and associated companies.

We will apply a disciplined and rigorous investment

process to ensure that capital is invested only in assets
that, after prudent assessment, offer attractive returns,
well above our cost of capital. Our approach balances
investment to grow the value of the business and
returns to shareholders, while aiming to maintain a
strong balance sheet and retain our single A credit rating.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Our capabilities

Al

Cu

Fe

TiO2

Left and below

From our diverse
portfolio we supply
the metals and minerals
that help the world
to grow.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Aluminium
Aluminium is a unique and versatile metal. Light,
strong, flexible, non-corrosive and infinitely recyclable,
aluminium is used in a broad range of applications for
transportation, packaging, electrical materials, medicine,
construction and other sectors.

Building on more than a century of experience and

expertise, the group is renowned for its leadership
in research and technology as well as its unrivalled
renewable energy assets through its hydropower portfolio.
Rio Tinto Alcan owns 11 power stations and manages
operations on five continents, primarily in Canada,
Australia, France and the UK. The groups operations are
divided into two operating units: Bauxite & Alumina and
Primary Metal. Rio Tinto Alcan also provides technology
sales and services, engineering services, smelting
equipment sales and smelting consumables production
for the global aluminium industry.

Rio Tintos aluminium product group, Rio Tinto Alcan,

is a global leader in the aluminium industry. Our fullyintegrated facilities include high-quality bauxite mines,
large-scale alumina refineries, and some of the worlds
lowest-cost, most technologically-advanced primary
aluminium smelters. Rio Tinto Alcans APTM smelting
technology is the industry benchmark, and the group
benefits from access to the largest and best-quality
bauxite reserves in the industry.

Rio Tintos aluminium product group,

Rio Tinto Alcan, is a global leader in the
aluminium industry. Our fully-integrated
facilities include high-quality bauxite
mines, large-scale alumina refineries,
and some of the worlds lowest-cost,
most technologically-advanced primary
aluminium smelters.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Titanium dioxide reflects and

scatters light like thousands
of tiny mirrors, and when
used as a pigment in paint,
gives brilliance and opacity.

Copper
Coppers malleability, strength and conductivity make it
useful in a range of building and electrical applications,
and it is an element found in nearly every home and
vehicle. From the electricity that lights our homes, to the
infrastructure that builds our cities, to the technology
that connects our world, copper is essential to making
modern life work.

Rio Tintos industrial minerals businesses comprise

Rio Tinto Minerals, a world leader in borates with
operations in the US and Asia, and a development
project in Europe; and Rio Tinto Iron & Titanium, an
industry leader in high-grade titanium dioxide feedstocks
which operates in Canada, South Africa and Madagascar.
Dampier Salt is one of the worlds largest producers of
seaborne salt.

Rio Tintos Copper group discovers, extracts and

processes copper in ways that continually deliver
superior long-term value to our stakeholders.

Market differentiation in the industrial minerals sector

depends on technical and marketing expertise and the
group maintains research and development facilities in
Europe and North America to develop new products and
support customers.

Our key operating assets are world-class and our

project pipeline includes a suite of longer-term
opportunities that will help meet the worlds increasing
demand for copper. In addition to our core product, we
generate additional revenue from valuable by-products:
gold, silver and molybdenum.
Our Copper group has always looked ahead to advance
our industry. From our very beginnings to today, we
invest extensively in leading-edge technologies and
processes, to ensure our projects, both in operation and
in development, deliver a sustainable and exciting future.
Diamonds & Minerals
Rio Tintos Diamonds & Minerals portfolio consists of
mines and development projects across four sectors
and spanning five continents. These businesses serve
a range of industries but have a shared track record of
creating and defining new and profitable markets for
their products.
Rio Tinto is one of the worlds largest diamond producers
and the worlds largest producer of natural coloured
diamonds. Our diamond interests comprise the Diavik
mine in Canada, the Argyle mine in Australia, the Murowa
mine in Zimbabwe and an advanced diamond project in
Madhya Pradesh, India.
We have diamond sales and marketing headquarters
in London and an office in the worlds diamond centre
of Antwerp, Belgium. A strict chain of custody process
ensures that all products are segregated according to
mine source.

The Diamonds & Minerals group also includes the

Simandou iron ore project in Guinea.
Energy
Rio Tintos Energy group produces thermal coal, used
to generate electricity, coking coal for making steel, and
uranium, used exclusively for the generation of nuclear
electricity.
Rio Tinto is a leading seaborne supplier of thermal and
coking coal to Asian customers. Its coal interests are
located in Australia and Africa and supply the seaborne
traded and Australian domestic markets.
Rio Tinto Coal Australia manages the groups interests
in seven coal mines in Queensland and New South
Wales. Rio Tinto Coal Mozambiques first operation,
the Benga Mine, began exports in 2012.
Rio Tinto is also a major global uranium producer, and
supplies uranium oxide from its majority owned mines in
Australia and Namibia to electric power utilities globally.
A number of opportunities for brownfield expansions
exist at the Coal & Allied operations in the Hunter Valley
and Hail Creek Mine in Queensland, and are under
consideration at the Ranger and Rssing uranium mines.

Energy is used to power

appliances that are
part of everyday life.

Our products go into the infrastructure

of our towns and cities, into cars and
mobile phones, into healthcare and
renewable energy solutions and a
myriad of other applications.
7

Below
Iron ore is the key
ingredient in the
production of steel, one
of the most fundamental
and durable products for
modern-day living.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Iron Ore
Iron is the most useful metal in the world, used in
a variety of forms and a multitude of applications in
everyday life.

Our integrated iron ore operations including mines, rail,

ports and related infrastructure are designed to respond
rapidly to changes in demand and are geographically well
positioned to take advantage of demand for iron ore in
both developed and developing regions.

We find and extract iron ore, and ship it to our customers

who extract iron metal from the ore. We are one of the
worlds largest iron ore producers and the only one with
a truly global production and growth platform, spanning
four continents.
Our Iron Ore group comprises wholly-owned subsidiaries
and joint venture initiatives. We own and manage mining
and processing operations in Western Australia (Pilbara)
and Canada (Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador).

Our operations in the Pilbara region of Western Australia

are expanding by 50 per cent in what is now Australias
largest mining project, and we are increasing capacity
at our Iron Ore Company of Canada operations.
Through global projects, expansions and innovations,
we are further extending our leading role in the global
iron ore sector.
The Iron Ore groups development pipeline also includes
the Odisha project in India. In addition, the group
operates Rio Tinto Marine, the ocean freight business
that services the entire Rio Tinto Group.

Right
Our Mine of the
FutureTM programme is
developing advanced
ways of finding,
extracting and
processing minerals
from deep within the
Earth. This includes
the development of
autonomous haul trucks
currently in operation
at two autonomous pits,
with 150 expected to be
deployed by 2015.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Technology & Innovation

Technology is an increasingly important success factor
in the metal and mineral industry. The Technology &
Innovation (T&I) group provides world-class technology
services to Rio Tintos product groups and businesses.
It also advises Rio Tintos executive management.
T&I is made up of a number of functions that identify,
share and implement leading practice across Rio Tinto.
The functions each have responsibility for different
areas of mine technology, which include surface and
underground mining, asset management, strategic
production planning, processing, project development
and implementation, and technical risk evaluation of
investment opportunities.

The various elements of T&I collaborate in capturing

knowledge and spreading it across Rio Tinto. T&I
identifies and promotes leading practice in operational
technology. It also pursues step change innovations
that will provide Rio Tinto with further competitive
advantages as it develops the orebodies of the future.

Below
The extensive drilling
exploration platforms
and road network which
have been built on the
slopes of Pic de Fon.
Simandou, Guinea

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

Exploration
Exploration involves identifying, prioritising and testing
geological targets. We are a product of our exploration
expertise and see this activity as a core part of our
business. The goal of our Exploration group is to create
value for Rio Tinto through the discovery or acquisition
of Tier 1 resources the largest, lowest-cost resources
that are profitable at all parts of the commodity cycle.

Rio Tinto Exploration is organised into four regional

teams: Americas, Australasia, Africa-Europe and Eurasia.
In addition, the Project Generation Group provides
specialist commodity, data and information, technical
and orebody knowledge assistance to the regional teams.

10

Sustainable development
Our commitment to sustainable development is integrated into everything we do.
Our operations give us the opportunity to bring enduring benefits to the communities,
regions and countries where we work, and our metals and minerals are transformed
into end products that contribute to higher living standards.

Above
Mafindou School,
built by Rio Tinto as
part of the community
programme of the
Simandou project
Guinea, West Africa.

11

Adopting a responsible approach to mineral development

ensures we gain and maintain our licence to operate. It
means we provide confidence to our stakeholders, and
improve our access to the mineral resources, people and
capital we need. Our approach to sustainable development
therefore enables us to keep investing in line with our
Group strategy as well as to plan, implement and deliver
sustainable contributions to social wellbeing, environmental
stewardship and economic prosperity, within our strong
governance systems.

Safety is fundamental to the way we do business. Our

safety vision is that together we will create an injury and
illness-free workplace where everyone goes home safe
and healthy each day of their working life. We believe
that strong safety leadership and a deep safety culture
are critical if we are to achieve our goals.
We are committed to working with others to explore
how together we might help solve some of the global
challenges we face including biodiversity loss;
climate change and its impact on water and energy;
poverty and corruption. By building relationships with
our stakeholders, and by applying risk analysis and
management effectively throughout our business, we
can create opportunities out of external challenges
and extend our licence to operate.

Below
Employee checking
foliage regeneration
in Bengalla, Australia.

Capability brochure
About Rio Tinto

May 2013

The minerals and metals produced at our operations

contribute to societys needs, creating wealth to support
community infrastructure, healthcare and education
programmes, and delivering financial returns for
our shareholders.

This approach begins with The way we work our global

code of business conduct supported by our corporate
policies, strategies and standards that lay down the
minimum acceptable requirements for behaviour or
operating conditions. It is designed to ensure that we
all reflect in our daily work the high standards we share.

But we also recognise that, if not managed appropriately,

some aspects of our activities have the ability to detract
from sustainable development, such as options for the
future use of water and land; amenity impacts on local
communities; and greenhouse gas emissions from our
operations and the use of our products.
We have a structured framework that enables us to
deliver industry-leading performance and effectively
manage risks.

We are committed to working with others

to explore how together we might help
solve some of the global challenges we
face including biodiversity loss; climate
change and its impact on water and
energy; poverty and corruption.

12

Operations map
Our activities span the world. We are strongly
represented in Australia and North America,
regions which account for around 80 per cent
of our assets. We also have significant businesses
in Asia, Europe, Africa and South America.

13

Aluminium
Bauxite, alumina and aluminium
Mines and mining projects
Smelters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine
Pacific Aluminium
Bauxite, alumina and aluminium
Mines and mining projects
Smelters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine
Other Aluminium
Bauxite, alumina and aluminium

Copper
Copper, gold, silver, molybdenum
and nickel

Iron Ore
Iron ore
M
 ines and mining projects
S
 melters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine

Mines and mining projects

Smelters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine
Diamonds & Minerals
Diamonds, borates, salt, titanium
dioxide feedstock, high-purity iron,
metal powders, iron ore, zircon, rutile
and lithium

Energy
Thermal coal, coking coal and uranium
M
 ines and mining projects
S
 melters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine

Mines and mining projects

Smelters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine

Mines and mining projects

Smelters, refineries and processing
plants remote from mine
Locations on the map are indicative.

14

Rio Tinto plc

2 Eastbourne Terrace
London W2 6LG
United Kingdom

Rio Tinto Limited

120 Collins Street
Melbourne, Victoria 3000
Australia

T +44 (0)20 7781 2000

T +61 (0)3 9283 3333

riotinto.com

Capability brochures
About Rio Tinto
Aluminium
Copper
Diamonds
Energy
Exploration
Industrial minerals
Iron Ore
Technology & Innovation

0019 V1 ENG ABOUT RIO TINTO MAY 2013 PDF