Rio Tinto celebrates 25 years of technical innovation in Melbourne


09 October 2017

Rio Tinto’s Bundoora Technical Development Centre has celebrated 25 years of pioneering technical development in Melbourne.

Celebrating the milestone with colleagues last month Rio Tinto Group executive Growth and Innovation Stephen McIntosh said "The unique technical insights from the work here at Bundoora continue to deliver real value to the business. The centre is actively involved in applying technical development to how we find, study, develop, optimise and close our operations.

"Our Bundoora site has played a vital role in developing the next generation of technical practitioners for our business with many going on to forge successful careers within our operations and product groups."

The Hon Jacinta Allan, Acting Victorian Minister for Industry, Employment and Resources, congratulated Rio Tinto on this landmark anniversary.

"Rio Tinto and its Bundoora Technical Development Centre have demonstrated global leadership and excellence in the earth resources sector, ensuring Victoria is a state of discovery. For 25 years, Rio Tinto has used innovative thinking, research and technology to drive a new era of mining exploration. The Victorian Government is proud to celebrate this terrific milestone."

Rio Tinto general manager technical development Growth and Innovation Jared Osborne said "Over the past 25 years, our investments in process development, mineralogy and waste water and tailings have paid off. We have successfully partnered with the business to develop and de-risk new or complex metallurgical processes across most of Rio Tinto’s commodities and sites."

The Bundoora hub is home to more than 120 highly experienced technical and commercial experts, representing a wide cross-section of Rio Tinto’s Growth and Innovation group.

Rio Tinto has a proud history of applying innovative thinking to develop novel processes to treat a range of commodities. This includes the Jadar deposit in Serbia where the team is developing a process to extract boric acid and lithium carbonate from the newly discovered lithium borate mineral, Jadarite.

Notes to editors

The Bundoora Technical Development Centre is located 16kms from the Melbourne CBD and was opened on 28 September 1992 by the Hon Senator John Button, Minister for Industry, Technology and Commerce.