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
Download our 2024 suite of reports, including our 2024 Taxes and Royalties Paid Report, detailing $8.4 billion of taxes and royalties paid globally during the year
Get the latest news, stories and updates
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 students
If you want to drive real change, we have just the place to do it
Empowering families with flexibility
Supporting new parents of any gender with equal access to parental leave
Available jobs
Join our team
Salt has been in use since ancient times. It was used to preserve Egyptian mummies, and sprinkled onto the stage in old Japanese theatres to ward off evil spirits.
Salt is essential for human life. A well-known food ingredient, salt is also critical for many industries. The majority of the salt Rio Tinto produces is used by the chemical industry. Salt is a key ingredient in many renewable energy products, like electric car batteries. Salt is also essential for making materials like glass, paper, plastics, textiles and even soaps and detergents, and for processing foods and de-ice roads.
Our Dampier Salt operations in Western Australia are the world’s largest exporter of seaborne salt – meaning salt that is produced from evaporating seawater, as opposed to being mined as a solid mineral. We export millions of tonnes of salt every year, with most of it going to customers in Asia and the Middle East.
Dampier Salt is one of our oldest businesses and uses a unique and sustainable production process that relies almost entirely on the power of the sun and wind.
The shallow evaporation flats across Dampier Salt’s 2 operations have the potential to produce salt almost infinitely. The operations rely on natural processes of evaporation over an area greater than 21,000 hectares (equivalent to 168,000 Olympic sized swimming pools) to transform seawater into salt, predominately used for industrial purposes. The few million tonnes of seawater pumped over these shallow flats every day has created an important habitat that supports a variety of wading birds, including migratory shorebirds. The Dampier Salt operations are listed as Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) by Birdlife Australia due to greater than 1% of the world population of Red-necked Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper and Red-capped Plover counted regularly each year. Port Hedland is also the most important known Australian site for Broad-billed Sandpiper and the endangered Asian Dowitcher.
As the sun and wind evaporate the water over months of exposure, we’re left with a salty crust when salt crystals begin to form. Once dry, a specialised harvester collects the salt and transfers it to 320 tonne trucks for transfer to the washing plant. Here the salt is cleaned of impurities and stockpiled based on end-use specifications. From these stockpiles it is loaded onto ships at our on-site dock and transported to customers around the world.
Salt is a raw material and in industrial use helps make chlorine, caustic soda, and soda ash, all of which are used in processing and manufacturing of other products, including:
We’re committed to providing customers with premium grade salt that meets external standards, including halal, kosher and ISO9001 certifications.
We also provide START labels, which are digital sustainability labels for materials. They provide transparency into key ESG metrics and provenance information of the salt production process.
Sales and marketing
E: dsl-commercial@riotinto.com