Rio Tinto
UK-Australian mining group dual-listed in London and Sydney; the world's second-largest miner, dominant in Pilbara iron ore and a fast-expanding force in copper and lithium.
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What it is
Rio Tinto is a UK-Australian mining and metals group structured as a dual-listed company since 1995. Rio Tinto plc, incorporated in England and Wales, is listed on the London Stock Exchange and the NYSE. Rio Tinto Limited, incorporated in Australia, is listed on the ASX. Both entities share a single board and a common economic interest, operating as one group. The group mines iron ore, copper, aluminium, lithium, and industrial minerals across more than 35 countries. The bulk of earnings originate in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
History
The name traces to 1873, when a British-German consortium acquired copper-sulphide mines along the Rio Tinto River in Huelva, Spain. The group entered Pilbara iron ore through concessions from 1962, and formed the modern DLC structure by merging with CRA Limited of Australia in 1995. A 2007 leveraged acquisition of Alcan Aluminium left the group with net debt above US$40B; Rio Tinto spent 2009 to 2014 divesting non-core assets including coal and its original Spanish copper mines. CEO Jakob Stausholm took over in January 2021 after the 2020 destruction of the Juukan Gorge sacred Aboriginal rock shelters in Western Australia triggered the removal of his predecessor, forcing a public commitment to improved community and heritage practices.
Current state
As of mid-2026, Rio Tinto's business spans four main commodity pillars.
Iron ore is the core earnings driver. Rio Tinto produced around 330 Mt in the Pilbara in 2025 and shipped Pilbara Blend, the global benchmark iron ore brand. The Simandou project in Guinea, the world's largest undeveloped deposit of high-grade iron ore, sent its first cargo in December 2025 and is targeting 5 to 10 Mt in 2026, on the way to a full ramp in the early 2030s. Simandou is co-owned with Chinalco and WCS Simfer and required building a 700 km railway and a new port at Morebaya.
Copper is the growth bet. Oyu Tolgoi underground in Mongolia, a block-cave operation, is ramping toward a long-run target of 500,000 tpa of copper equivalent, making it potentially the world's third-largest copper mine. Rio Tinto holds a 30% stake in Escondida in Chile, the world's largest copper mine, operated by BHP. The Kennecott smelter in Utah, US underwent a major rebuild.
Lithium became a third growth pillar after Rio Tinto completed the US$6.7B acquisition of Arcadium Lithium in March 2025, creating Rio Tinto Lithium. Arcadium contributes spodumene hard-rock resources in Australia and brine assets in Argentina, complementing the Rincon project. Rincon shipped its first commercial battery-grade lithium in March 2026 and is targeting 60,000 tpa of lithium carbonate equivalent by 2029. Rio Tinto Lithium's combined target is more than 200,000 tpa LCE by 2028.
Full-year 2025 underlying EBITDA was US$23.3B, profit after tax attributable to Rio Tinto shareholders was US$11.6B, and net cash from operations was US$15.6B.
Relationships
Rio Tinto is the world's largest iron ore exporter and a close commercial counterpart to the Chinese steel industry, which buys the majority of its Pilbara output. In Simandou, the Chinese state-linked co-investors (Chinalco, Baowu) are partners, not just customers. The group holds no coal assets, which blocked a potential mega-merger with Glencore. Merger talks with Glencore collapsed in February 2026 over Glencore's coal portfolio; the UK Takeover Panel's cooling-off period prevents formal re-engagement until August 2026. At Rincon, Rio Tinto co-financed the US$1.175B Phase 2 expansion with multilateral development banks including the IFC and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation.
What to watch
- Simandou ramp pace: whether Guinea's 5 to 10 Mt 2026 sales target is met and how the high-grade ore affects Pilbara Blend price differentials.
- Oyu Tolgoi underground: first full block-cave drawbell production and whether Mongolia's royalty framework remains stable.
- Glencore merger: if talks restart in August 2026 and what coal-demerger structure could make a combination viable.
- Rincon commercial ramp: 3,000 tpa year-end 2026 target and 60,000 tpa by 2029.
- Direct lithium extraction technology: whether Rincon's hybrid DLE approach proves up at scale and attracts Western battery offtake away from Chinese buyers.