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
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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 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
Providing the materials the world needs means we have an impact on the environment. We work in remote locations and sensitive environments, our activities have the potential to cause harm through pollution or land disturbance, and we have a significant carbon footprint.
We know that the way we produce these products is just as important as the minerals and metals themselves. We recognise the responsibility we are entrusted with and see ourselves as long-term stewards of natural resources, including land and water, and the ecosystems they support.
Our commitment to understanding and mitigating the risks and impacts of our operations extends from the very beginning of an operation’s life to beyond closure. More immediately, we are accelerating action to reduce our carbon emissions and investing to help reduce emissions generated by the use of our products. We have an important role to play.
Wherever we work, we continually partner with Indigenous and local communities to improve our natural resource management practices to minimise our impact on the environment. For example, every year, at the Diavik Diamond Mine, in Canada’s Northwest Territories, we bring together biologists and members from the local Indigenous communities to sample the water and assess the fish. And in Australia, at our Weipa operations in Far North Queensland, we are working with Traditional Owners and Local Aboriginal People to rehabilitate land using ancient seeds to make sure the right plants are grown in the right areas. These plants will be used for medicine, food and ceremonies.
At our managed operations, we apply internal standards and practices that are in line with – and sometimes go beyond – international and local regulations and permits, as well as the requirements of relevant industry associations such as the ICMM. Our standards clearly articulate what we require from our sites in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem services management, air and water emissions control and waste management. We have assurance processes against these standards, local regulations and international certifications such as Copper Mark and Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI).
We know we have more to do, but from the Pilbara in Western Australia, to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia to Saguenay-Lac-St. Jean, in Quebec, Canada, we are committed to protecting the land, water, ecosystems and environments where we explore and operate.
We often work in partnership to learn from others and continually improve our processes and techniques. By combining our knowledge, we ensure that our partnerships have lasting, measurable impact.
We engage with global organisations – like the Proteus Partnership, a collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme’s World Conservation Monitoring Centre – to improve the way we avoid harming and mitigate risks to sensitive species and ecosystems. We also work with local organisations on mutually beneficial projects. For example, in Madagascar, we partnered with Asity Madagascar who work with Oxford Brookes University, in the UK, to establish the Ampasy Research Station, which acts as a community hub to support forest conservation, sustainable farming practices and ecotourism around the Tsitongambarika Forest, near our QIT Madagascar Minerals operation.
At Richards Bay Minerals, our operation in South Africa, we have been pioneering sand dune rehabilitation for the past 40 years – testing, learning and improving as we go. Researchers of this work have published their learnings in more than 60 international scientific journal articles, allowing others to benefit from our experience.
We are members of the ICMM: its Principles and their associated Performance Expectations provide member companies like ours with a framework for performance, particularly:
We are also founders and active members of the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), and were the first aluminium producer to have our product ASI-certified as responsible throughout its lifecycle. We continue to actively participate in the review of the ASI standard on biodiversity and ecosystem services, contributing our knowledge and experience gained on the ground at our operations around the world.
ASI certification was made possible with collaboration across the aluminium value chain, including Nespresso, Flora & Fauna International (FFI), World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the International Union on the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
We report externally on our greenhouse gas and other air emissions, waste and tailings, along with our Group water stewardship practices. We are among the most transparent in our industry regarding our water risks, and we are focused on increasingly demonstrating our environmental performance through data and technology.
In a cyclone-prone area these wetlands serve as important flood attenuation systems. By closure, the wetlands’ total area will be the size of 300 football (soccer) fields, providing a home for birds, fish and other animals – like crocodiles – and supplying the local Antanosy people with plants used for crafts, fishing baskets and houses.
Making the most of what we take from the ground
Working to protect marine turtles through community partnerships
We’re advancing palm cockatoo research with technology trials at Weipa