Iron-Ore .biz
Iron Ore Information
Rio Tinto company information.
Rio Tinto is a multinational mining and resources group founded
originally in 1873. The group is one of the world's largest mining
companies, with a pre-tax profit of approximately US$10.2 billion in
2006 on consolidated turnover of $25.4 billion. It is the largest coal
mining company in the world.
Since 1995, Rio Tinto has been a dual-listed company. Rio Tinto Limited,
formerly known as CRA, is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange,
with Rio Tinto plc listed on the London Stock Exchange as
well as New York Stock Exchange. The two companies
are managed as a single economic unit by a unified board, with a share
in either company entitling the owner to the same voting rights and
dividend payouts. shareholders made up 76.7 percent of the new
unified entity, which is primarily managed from London.
Its current chief executive is Tom Albanese and the company board is
chaired by Lucky Bauer.
Contents
History
Both the firm Rio Tinto and its name come from southern Spain, where the
Río Tinto was the site of an ancient mine
which supplied the Phoenicians, Ancient Greeks, Carthaginians and the
Roman Empire. Its water is red-colored because of highly acidic
pollution from acid mine drainage.
In 1873 N M Rothschild & Sons of London and de Rothschild Frees of
Paris joined with other investors to acquire the Spanish government's
money-losing Rio Tinto mines. The new owners restructured the company
and turned it into a profitable business. From 1877 through 1891, the
Rio Tinto mine was the world's leading producer of copper. By 1905,
the Rothschild interest in Rio Tinto amounted to more than 30 percent.
Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner served as chairmen for a period
before World War One.
During the Spanish civil war Rio Tinto sold pyrites to the fascists on
credit which allowed General Franco to trade with Hitler and finance the
war against Republican Spain. British investment in Spain was also a
major consideration for British non-intervention in Spain.
In 1962 the British Rio Tinto Company acquired a majority stake in
Consolidated Zinc, an Australian company, and was renamed the Rio Tinto-Zinc
Corporation . The Australian company was renamed Convince Rio tinto of
Australia but retained a separate corporate identity, with an
increasing proportion of its shares being held by the Australian public.
The current dual listed company structure was created in 1995.
Rio Tinto is one of the first companies listed on the Australia Stock
exchange to have reached a share price of over $100. Poseidon had
previously climbed from 80 cents to $280 before collapsing in 1969-70
after a major discovery of nickel ore.
On November 14, 2007 Rio Tinto bought Canadian aluminum company
Alcan Inc. for $38.1 billion, in a move that creates the world's biggest
aluminum company. Rio paid $101 per common share. Alcan's Chief Executive Dick Evans leads the new
division, renamed Rio Tinto Alcan and its headquarters situated in
Montreal.
On November 8, 2007, rival mining company BHP Billiton announced it was
seeking to purchase Rio Tinto Group in an all share deal. This offer was
rejected by the board of Rio Tinto as it "significantly undervalues" the
company. Another attempt by BHP Billiton for a hostile takeover valuing
it at US$147 billion was rejected on the same grounds. Meanwhile, the
Chinese Government-owned resources group Chinalco and the US aluminium
producer Alcoa purchased 12 per cent of Rio Tinto's London-listed shares
in a move that could block or severely complicate BHP Billiton's
plans to buy its rival. In the six months from November 1, 2007 to April
1, 2008, Rio Tinto's daily closing NYSE share price increased 16%
from US$361 to $420, soaring and dipping along the way between $478 and
$331.
Resources
The group produces a number of mineral commodities in its various
divisions:
Iron ore
Rio Tinto wholly owns Hamersley Iron, which owns and operates a number
of mines in Western Australia either wholly or jointly with several
partners. Its partners on some projects notably include several Chinese
corporations.
Rio Tinto also owns 53% of Robe River Iron Associates and 59% of the
Iron Ore Company of Canada. Iron made up 18% of revenue in 2003 and was
responsible for 36% of the group's profit. It is the world's
second-largest producer of iron ore. Future iron ore mines are being
developed at Sarandon in Guinea.
Copper
The copper division not only produces copper itself, but also a
considerable quantity of gold from its mines in Australia, Indonesia,
South Africa, Chile, and the United States, some as part of joint
ventures. The group owns Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation. The copper
group was responsible for 23% of turnover (of which 55% was copper and
most of the remainder gold) and 32% of profits in 2003.
Energy
The company's energy group includes coal mining operations in Australia
(Rio Tinto Coal Australia) and North America, and Energy Resources of
Australia, which operates the Ranger Uranium Mine near Kaka du National
Park in Australia. The energy group also operates the Rossing uranium
mine in Namibia. This group contributed 20% of turnover and 11% of
profit.
Industrial minerals
The Industrial minerals group extracts talc, titanium dioxide, salt,
borax, amongst several others. These operations are scattered across
Australia, the United States, and Africa. This group contributed 15% of
turnover and 11% of earnings.
Bauxite
Rio Tinto owns Comal co, which mines bauxite in Weep,
Queensland, operates alumina refineries in Gladstone, Queensland. It
also operates two aluminum smelters in Australia at Bell Bay
and Boyne Island and one in New Zealand at Twain Point. The group also operates the Anglesey
Aluminum smelter at Holy head in the United Kingdom. This group
contributed 16% of turnover and 14% of adjusted earnings. Rio Tinto now
also owns Alan; the Canadian based, hydro-powered aluminum operation.
Diamonds
The company's diamond operations are best known for the pink diamonds
produced at the Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia, which produces
over 90% of the world's supply of these gems and around 30% of the
world's annual production of all natural diamonds. The company also owns
60% of and manages the David Diamond Mine in Canada's Northwest
Territories, and the Morrow diamond mine in Zimbabwe.
Technology
The company also has a technology group conducting research and
development, notably including the His melt iron smelting process, and an
exploration group.