Guide to Rio Tinto Australia & Their Major Projects

*Last updated: 13.03.2020

Founded in 1873, Rio Tinto is one of the world's largest metals and mining companies. Rio Tinto is an Australian company (one of the largest listed on the Australian Securities Exchange) though its presence is felt right across the globe.

Rio Tinto has two head offices, one in London, England and the other in Melbourne, Australia.

Rio Tinto focuses on five main product groups, aluminium, copper, diamonds and minerals, energy and iron ore.

Forbes currently ranks Rio Tinto as the world's 111th largest company with a current market cap of $99.3 billion and annual sales of $40 billion. Furthermore, Rio Tinto employs 46,807 people globally. The company controls gross assets worth $81 billion, the majority of which is made up of mining infrastructure . Large amounts of these assets located in Australia (35%), Canada (34%), Europe (13%) and the United States (11%).

Recently, Rio Tinto has been a major player in the development of autonomous technology for mines. In 2018, they announced plans for their 'intelligent mine' in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. They are also operate and autonomous rail system, which is the first of it's kind globally.

Currently, Rio Tinto is divesting from it's coal assets and is on the verge of no longer mining coal. In Australia, Rio Tinto, along with fellow mining company BHP, is a major driver of the country's economy. In 2012, Rio Tinto paid $8.7 billion in taxes to federal and state governments. Rio Tinto directly employs 23,000 people across Australia.

Map of Rio Tinto's assets across Australia:

Rio-Tinto-Map Rio Tinto Map-list

Who owns Rio Tinto Australia?

Rio Tinto is one of the largest metal and mining corporations in the world. They're an Anglo-Australian owned company, first beginning when a multinational consortium of investors bought a mine complex on the Rio Tinto in Spain.

How many employees does Rio Tinto have ?

According to Statista, Rio Tinto employed 46,007 people worldwide in 2019.

Who are Rio Tinto's competitors?

Rio Tinto are currently the second-largest mining company in the world. Their main competitors include BHP Group, Vale, Norilsk Nickel, Glencore, Anglo American and Newmont Goldcorp. Rio Tinto are currently responsible for $114.4 billion of market share, with 28% of growth in 2019. Learn more about Australia's mining giants with our article on Top 6 Mining Companies in Australia!