Rio Tinto has reported record copper production during the March quarter.
The copper milestone was achieved at the major’s Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia, part of a larger ramp-up plan currently underway.
Rio bauxite also hit record first quarter production and a monthly production record in March.
The company’s iron ore division exported 70.7 million tonnes in the March quarter, a slightly slower start compared to other commodities thanks to a series of cyclones and inclement weather affecting output.
“We continued to see strong operational improvement with the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine and our bauxite operations delivering record months for production in March,” Rio chief executive Jakob Stausholm said.
“Production was affected, however, by extreme weather events that impacted our Pilbara iron ore operations.”
Despite this, the major remains on track for the year and has a host of projects in its investment pipeline.
“We are making excellent progress with our major projects to deliver profitable organic growth,” Stausholm said.
“We achieved first iron ore at Western Range in the Pilbara and the Simandou high-grade iron ore project in Guinea remains on track.”
The major also celebrated the completed of its Arcadium acquisition in March, which saw the formation of Rio Tinto Lithium, a combination of Arcadium assets and Rio’s Rincon lithium project in Argentina.
“After successful completion of the Arcadium acquisition in March, we are advancing to establish a world-class lithium business,” Stausholm said.
“We will continue to drive progress towards our long-term strategy to deliver profitable growth, attractive shareholder returns and build a stronger, more diversified business.”
