Closure
Closure planning is an essential part of the life cycle for every Rio Tinto operation, to ensure we achieve sustainable development objectives when a mine or plant comes to the end of its working life. Good performance in closure management can enhance our reputation and enable us to maintain access to land and capital, to continue establishing new projects with the support of local communities.
Closing an operation does not simply mean shutting down production, rehabilitating the land and relinquishing ownership to regulators and communities. People's livelihoods can be affected, as can the social and environmental programmes established during the life of the operation.
Our Closure standard covers the design, development, operation and closure of all our operations to ensure that we leave a positive legacy. Under the requirements of the Closure standard, business decisions taken from the earliest stages of project development must integrate closure considerations to minimise financial, social and environmental risk from the outset.
- Approach
- Planning
- Engagement
- Results
Since the closure management plan review programme began in 2005 we have conducted 53 reviews. These ensure that our mine closure plans are current and aligned with stakeholders' expectations for sustainable development objectives with adequate financial provisions.
Operations integrated into the Group through the acquisition of Alcan in 2007 are progressively developing or updating closure management plans to meet the requirements of Rio Tinto's Closure standard. Ninety three per cent of the Group's businesses now have closure management plans in place for their operations.
Close down and restoration costs include the dismantling and demolition of infrastructure and the remediation of land disturbed during the life of mining and other operations. Estimated costs are provided for over the life of each operation based on the net present value of the close down and restoration costs. These estimates are made assuming current legislation, standards, restoration techniques and commodity prices which may impact on the economic life of an operation. The total provisions as at 31 December 2010 amounted to US$8,602 million.
