Finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs
Our business
We operate in 35 countries where our 60,000+ employees are working to find better ways to provide the materials the world needs
Our purpose in action
Continuous improvement and innovation are part of our DNA
Innovation
The need for innovation is greater than ever
We supply the metals and minerals used to help the world grow and decarbonise
Iron Ore
The primary raw material used to make steel, which is strong, long-lasting and cost-efficient
Lithium
The lightest of all metals, it is a key element needed for low-carbon technologies
Copper
Tough but malleable, corrosion-resistant and recyclable, and an excellent conductor of heat and transmitter of electricity
Bringing to market materials critical to urbanisation and the transition to a low-carbon economy
Oyu Tolgoi
One of the most modern, safe and sustainable operations in the world
Rincon Project
A long-life, low-cost and low-carbon lithium source
Simandou Project
The world’s largest untapped high-grade iron ore deposit
Providing materials the world needs in a responsible way
Climate Change
We’re targeting net zero emissions by 2050
Nature solutions
Our nature-based solutions projects complement the work we're doing to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 emissions
Enabling ESG transparency
Our START™ initiative tracks traceability and responsible production of Rio Tinto materials.
We aim to deliver superior returns to our shareholders while safeguarding the environment and meeting our obligations to wider society
Reports 2024
Our suite of reports include our latest annual report, taxes paid report, sustainability reporting, climate reporting and modern slavery
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Things You Can't Live Without
Our podcast discussing what needs to happen to create a sustainable future for the everyday items we have come to rely on
Refuelling the mining industry
How can we power the world’s biggest machines with new fuel solutions?
Forging a low-carbon future
How we're working to decarbonise iron ore and steel
Discover more about life at Rio Tinto
Graduates and interns
If you want to drive real change, we have just the place to do it
In-house consulting
Discover how our in-house consultancy team, PACE, offers a unique opportunity to help shape Rio Tinto from the inside
Available jobs
Join our team
We move the materials the world needs safely, sustainably and efficiently.
As the leading charterer in the world, our Marine team uses its expertise, scale, and global network to charter and operate a fleet of more than 230 ships to transport over 300 million tonnes of product every year. Our fleet connects our products with the global economy and moves a range of commodities – including iron ore, bauxite and minerals – across multiple continents.
We are committed to high maritime operational and safety standards, and adhere to all applicable maritime laws and regulations across our owned and chartered ships, including the Maritime Labour Convention.
Nothing is more important than the safety and wellbeing of the seafarers of our owned and chartered fleet. Given the scale of our operations, we are uniquely placed to lead the maritime shipping industry in safety and crew welfare.
In 2001, we established RightShip, a joint venture with BHP and Cargill, which increases transparency and improves maritime safety and environmental standards by helping customers identify, manage, and eliminate risks in the marine supply chain.
RightShip welcomed Permira as a new minority investor to accelerate technology-led growth and advance its mission of zero harm. BHP, Cargill, and Rio Tinto retain equal stakes.
Over the years, we established a dedicated Safety and Vetting desk and strengthened our assurance program, but we also recognise that industry safety standards remain inconsistent.
So we launched the Designated Owners and Operators (DOO) program in 2023. Since then, we’ve grown from 5 to 30 members and have been making progress in raising the bar for safety and crew welfare across the dry bulk sector. Our DOO partners now represent nearly 50% of our chartered volumes, reflecting our commitment to long-term partnerships. This pioneering program brings together like-minded partners to drive consistent, high-quality standards onboard vessels by drawing on industry-recognised best practices, including the Dry Bulk Management Standard (DryBMS) and the Sustainable Shipping Initiative’s (SSI) crew welfare self-assessment framework (Rio Tinto Safety Stewardship Framework).
We are now influencing everyday work for thousands of seafarers across our chartered fleet, ensuring more consistent adoption of fatality prevention practices across our portfolio. Through the DOO Program and increased vessel inspections, we have reduced critical shipboard incidents at our terminal facilities by 50% compared to a 2022 baseline.
In 2025, we expanded the DOO program with the launch of the Master Coach initiative, where our Shipboard Coaches coach masters, chief officers and chief engineers, and elevate on-field leadership towards safety at sea daily.
Women represent 1.2% of the global seafarer workforce, and this number is growing.
On our owned and managed fleet, women represent over 11% of seafarers, reflecting our ongoing commitment to fostering greater gender diversity and inclusion at sea.
We’ve begun making changes to our vessels to improve physical and psychological safety on board, such as providing separate male and female locker rooms, installing smart CCTV in high-frequented areas, and more.
In a first for the industry, we’ve co-created a maternity and paternity leave policy with our ship management partner Anglo-Eastern. This policy includes rejoining bonuses for seafarers returning after childbirth and shore-based career opportunities to provide a more sustainable career path for women.
We’re also members of the All Aboard Alliance, a Global Maritime Forum initiative that brings together industry leaders to promote gender equality at sea.
We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint and driving innovation in maritime decarbonisation.
In 2024, we achieved a 39% reduction in emission intensity of our products carried on our owned and chartered fleet, and we are progressing towards our 2030 target of a 50% reduction in emissions intensity. We continue to implement energy efficiency measures, such as the incorporation of larger vessels, technical and design modifications, and speed and route optimisation.
Alongside our emission intensity reduction target, we also pledge to power 10% of our time-chartered fleet with lower-carbon fuels1 by 2030, progressing to 100% of our time-chartered fleet by 20402, as part of our First Movers Coalition (FMC) commitment. We are aiming to achieve net zero emissions from the shipping of our products by 2050.
As a transitional measure, we continue to explore opportunities such as liquefied natural gas (LNG).
To achieve our long-term goal of net zero emissions, we focus on progressing the availability and business case for end-state fuels such as low-carbon ammonia. Decarbonising shipping requires more than individual action – it needs the entire supply chain to collaborate by aligning ambitions, forming partnerships and creating incentives to support a fair and effective transition to net zero. We’re working towards that in a few ways, including as a founding partner of the West Australia-East Asia Iron Ore Green Corridor, and a strategic partner to the recently launched Pilbara Clean Fuel Bunkering Hub.
Additionally, regulation is essential to facilitate the drive towards net zero shipping eventually. A draft Net Zero Framework was announced by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in April 2025, that includes a global limit on greenhouse gas (GHG) fuel emission intensity and a pricing mechanism on emissions. This framework was planned for formal adoption in October 2025, but has been postponed by a year. We will continue to progress our decarbonisation efforts taking into consideration the evolution of this regulation.
1 Although the FMC currently employs the terminology “zero-emission” rather than “low-carbon”, with a guiding principle of delivering a well-to-wake greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction of 80% or more compared to fuel oil, we have updated our terminology to reflect that these fuels are unlikely to be fully net zero emissions on a lifecycle basis over the coming years. While we endeavour to achieve the guiding principle proposed by the FMC, we may initially consider fuel pathways with a lesser emission reduction with consideration to factors such as supply, availability of technology, and regulatory developments from the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
2 Subject to the availability of technology, supply, safety standards, and a reasonable price premium.