20th Apr 2006 07:01
Rio Tinto PLC20 April 2006 First quarter 2006 operations review • Production of most principal commodities was above the comparative period of 2005. • Most mines and plants operated at or near capacity in order to take advantage of strong markets. • The Group's share of iron ore production increased by four per cent compared with the first quarter of 2005 as the expansion programme continued. This increase was achieved notwithstanding the impact of heavy rains following a succession of cyclones in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. • Strong operational performance at the Kennecott Utah Copper smelter led to significantly increased levels of refined production. The optimisation of mine production in favour of molybdenum continued. • Production from the Comalco Alumina Refinery increased in the first quarter and was the strongest quarter to date, with March production the best month since production commenced. • Higher production levels of titanium dioxide feedstocks reflected the strength of current customer demand. • Australian hard coking coal production was in line with a short term decline in demand, as customers drew down on inventories, pending settlement on prices for 2006. All currency figures in this report are US dollars unless otherwise stated. IRON ORE AND IRON Rio Tinto share of production (000 tonnes) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Hamersley 20,371 +9% -9%Robe River 5,986 -9% -19%IOC (pellets and concentrate) 1,871 -7% -23% Global iron ore demand remains strong with supply limited. In March, the HopeDowns Joint Venture lodged a development application for its iron ore prospectwith the Western Australian government. In April, Rio Tinto was granted a miningconcession by the Government of Guinea for the development of the Simandou ironore project in west Africa. Hamersley and Robe River Adverse weather associated with a very active cyclone season affected theGroup's iron ore operations in Western Australia. Following five cyclones, fourof which crossed the coast, heavy rains resulted in temporary closures of therail line and flooding of several mines. Production was disrupted at Hamersleyand Robe leading to some lost tonnage in the first quarter. The severity of theweather conditions is likely to have a modest effect on iron ore productionearly in the second quarter and a consequent increase in unit cash costs. Notwithstanding this, Hamersley's first quarter production was nine per centhigher than the corresponding quarter of 2005 whilst production at Pannawonicaand West Angelas was lower than the same period in 2005 and the precedingquarter. HIsmelt HIsmelt commenced production in 2005 and process trials continued throughout thefirst quarter of 2006, with 4,033 tonnes of pig iron produced. A two monthfurnace re-line took place during the quarter and the plant was restarted on 1April. The plant has reached production rates of 35 per cent of nameplatecapacity, in line with expectations, and is continuing to ramp up production. Iron Ore Company of Canada First quarter production was constrained by severe winter weather. ENERGY US thermal coal Rio Tinto share of production (000 tonnes) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Kennecott Energy 29,481 +1% +1% Production was one per cent above the first and last quarter of 2005 mainly dueto the acceleration of the approved expansion project at the Antelope mine,where a quarterly production record was set. This increase more than offset adecline in production at Spring Creek following a planned two week outage toupgrade the crushing, conveying and loading facilities. Australian coal Rio Tinto share of production (000 tonnes) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Rio Tinto Coal Australia Hard coking coal 1,126 -41% -29% Other coal 7,618 -5% +1% Production of hard coking coal at Hail Creek matched a short term decline indemand during the first quarter. Most customers had lifted contract tonnage bythe end of 2005 and relied on stocks in anticipation of lower price settlementsin 2006. Production from the Hunter Valley operations was in line with theallocation set under the Port Waratah Coal Services capacity balancing system. INDUSTRIAL MINERALS Rio Tinto share of production (000 tonnes) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Borates 129 +6% -15%Titanium dioxide feedstock 344 +7% +3% First quarter borates production was six per cent higher than the first quarterof 2005 which was affected by prolonged wet weather at the Boron mine inCalifornia. Production fell compared with the fourth quarter in line withcustomer deliveries. Increased production of titanium dioxide feedstocks reflected the strength ofcurrent demand and QIT's recently completed Upgraded Slag (UGS) expansion to325,000 tonnes per annum. The UGS expansion to 375,000 tonnes per annum isproceeding as scheduled. ALUMINIUM Rio Tinto share of production (000 tonnes) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Rio Tinto Aluminium Bauxite 3,843 +12% -16% Alumina 778 +10% +4% Aluminium 207.1 -1% -4% Bauxite production was 12 per cent higher than the comparative period in 2005attributable to the successful commissioning of the Andoom mine and processingplant within the NeWeipa project. The decrease compared with the precedingquarter was due to wet weather in January and full product stockpiles. First quarter production from the Comalco Alumina Refinery at 257,000 tonnes wasthe highest quarter to date as the plant ramps up to nameplate capacity of 1.4million tonnes per annum. Production at Queensland Alumina and Eurallumina wasin line with the first quarter of 2005. Production at the aluminium smelters was slightly behind the first quarter of2005, primarily due to voluntary production cutbacks at Tiwai Point, because oflow rainfall and consequent hydropower constraints. COPPER Rio Tinto share of production (000 tonnes) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Kennecott Utah Copper Mined copper (000 tonnes) 61.6 -1% +19% Refined copper (000 tonnes) 70.9 +24% +9% Molybdenum (000 tonnes) 4.4 +14% -3% Mined gold (000 ozs) 133 +11% +28% Refined gold (000 ozs) 118 +31% +7%Escondida Mined copper (000 tonnes) 100.4 +18% +0%Grasberg JV Mined copper (000 tonnes) 11.9 -54% -69% Mined gold (000 ozs) 9 -94% -96% Kennecott Utah Copper The optimisation of mine production in favour of molybdenum continued. Goldcontained in copper concentrate was higher compared to the same period in 2005due to higher grades. Production of molybdenum increased compared to the firstquarter of 2005 as a result of improved recovery rates following the completionof the moly plant expansion project at the end of the second quarter of 2005. Refined copper and gold production was higher in the first quarter of 2006compared with the same period of 2005 due to strong operational performance atthe smelter. Escondida First quarter mined copper production was 18 per cent higher than the firstquarter of 2005 as a result of higher grades and production from the Norte pitfollowing its commissioning in September 2005. Grasberg Lower grades for copper, gold and silver as a result of mine sequencing led tolower production for all three commodities. Other copper operations Higher volumes of copper concentrate at Palabora were attributable to increasedthroughput whilst lower levels of concentrate smelted and anode productionresulted from a scheduled 40 day smelter shutdown. At Northparkes, increasedproduction compared to the first and last quarters of 2005 reflected the move toLift 2 underground ore where grades are significantly higher. DIAMONDS Rio Tinto share of production (000 carats) Q1 06 vs Q1 05 vs Q4 05Argyle 5,214 -40% -19%Diavik 1,073 +2% -2% Argyle Tonnes processed for the quarter were lower than the same quarter of 2005 due towet weather and the processing of ore of variable quality. Carat productionreflects the lower tonnes processed and lower grade in line with the revisedlife of mine plan. Continuing variability in production levels can be expectedas the mine reaches the end of the open-pit life. Diavik Throughput at Diavik was comparable with the prior quarter and the first quarterof 2005. Grades were similar to the previous quarter with a relatively constantmix from higher grade A154S ore and lower grade A154N ore. EXPLORATION AND EVALUATION Pre-tax expenditure on exploration and evaluation charged to the profit and lossaccount to the first quarter 2006 was US$57 million compared with US$30 millionin the comparable quarter of 2005. US$13 million of this expenditure was chargedagainst business unit earnings. In the Pilbara region of Western Australia five new iron ore deposits werehanded over to the product group evaluation team. Exploration drilling continued on copper targets in Chile, Argentina, Mexico andthe US. Diamond exploration continued in Canada, Botswana, Mauritania, Indiaand Brazil. Iron ore exploration continued in Western Australia and in westAfrica. Exploration for thermal and coking coal opportunities continued insouthern Africa, North America, South America and Mongolia. At La Sampala(nickel, Indonesia), negotiations for a Contract of Work continued. Progress is being made to advance ongoing exploration and evaluation of the LaGranja copper (Peru) and Jarandol borate (Serbia) projects, both won bycompetitive tender in the fourth quarter of 2005. Brownfield exploration is underway at a number of Rio Tinto businesses, withnotable efforts to expand resources continuing in the Pilbara, at Kennecott UtahCopper, on the Freeport and Cortez Joint Ventures, at Greens Creek and atNorthparkes. Evaluation work continued at Eagle (nickel/copper, US), Sari Gunay (gold, Iran),Resolution (copper/gold, US), Potasio Rio Colorado (potash, Argentina) andSimandou (iron ore, Guinea). CAPITAL MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME During the first quarter of 2006, the Group bought back $378 million of RioTinto plc shares under the 2006/2007 $2.5 billion share buyback programmeannounced on 2 February 2006. This replaced the 2005/2006 programme under which$972 million was returned to shareholders of Rio Tinto plc and Rio TintoLimited. For further information, please contact: LONDON AUSTRALIA Media Relations Media RelationsHugh Leggatt Ian HeadOffice: +44 (0) 20 7753 2273 Office: +61 (0) 3 9283 3620Mobile: +44 (0) 7764 369 977 Mobile: +61 (0) 408 360 101 Investor Relations Investor RelationsNigel Jones Dave SkinnerOffice: +44 (0) 20 7753 2401 Office: +61 (0) 3 9283 3628Mobile: +44 (0) 7917 227 365 Mobile: +61 (0) 408 335 309David Ovington Susie CreswellOffice: +44 (0) 20 7753 2326 Office: +61 (0) 3 9283 3639Mobile: +44 (0) 7920 010978 Mobile: +61 (0) 418 933 792 Website: www.riotinto.comHigh resolution photographs available at: www.newscast.co.uk RIO TINTO PRODUCTION SUMMARYRIO TINTO SHARE OF PRODUCTION QUARTER FULL YEAR % CHANGE 2005 2005 2006 2005 Q1 06 Q1 06 Q1 Q4 Q1 vs vsPrincipal Commodities Q4 05 Q1 05Alumina ('000 t) 710 748 778 2,963 4% 10%Aluminium ('000 t) 208.3 215.6 207.1 853.7 -4% -1%Borates ('000 t) 122 151 129 560 -15% 6%Coal - hard coking coal ('000 t) 1,902 1,585 1,126 7,195 -29% -41%Coal - other Australian ('000 t) 7,993 7,576 7,618 30,863 1% -5%Coal - US ('000 t) 29,240 29,135 29,481 115,580 1% 1%Copper - mined ('000 t) 188.2 210.7 196.5 784.4 -7% 4%Copper - refined ('000 t) 77.8 85.5 85.6 314.5 0% 10%Diamonds ('000 cts) 9,733 7,598 6,324 35,635 -17% -35%Gold - mined ('000 ozs) 460 469 221 1,726 -53% -52%Gold - refined ('000 ozs) 90 110 118 369 7% 31%Iron ore ('000 t) 27,618 32,522 28,668 124,494 -12% 4%Titanium dioxide feedstock ('000 t) 321 335 344 1,312 3% 7%Other Metals & MineralsBauxite ('000 t) 3,443 4,576 3,843 15,474 -16% 12%Lead - mined ('000 t) 3.4 2.7 3.0 11.9 13% -10%Molybdenum ('000 t) 3.9 4.6 4.4 15.6 -3% 14%Pig Iron ('000 t) - 5.4 2.4 5.4 -55% -Salt ('000 t) 1,383 1,610 1,209 5,507 -25% -13%Silver - mined ('000 ozs) 4,020 3,982 3,180 14,926 -20% -21%Silver - refined ('000 ozs) 755 814 1,398 3,538 72% 85%Talc ('000 t) 325 346 381 1,364 10% 17%Uranium (tonnes) 1,617 1,785 1,508 6,582 -16% -7%Zinc - mined ('000 t) 10.0 8.7 8.6 37.2 -2% -14% Throughout this report, figures in italics indicate adjustments made since thefigure was previously quoted on the equivalent page. Production figures are sometimes more precise than the rounded numbers shown,hence small differences may result between the total of the quarter figures andthe full year figures. RIO TINTO SHARE OF PRODUCTION FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005ALUMINAProduction ('000 tonnes)Comalco Alumina Refinery 100% 196 228 191 220 257 835Eurallumina 56% 148 150 150 153 152 601Queensland Alumina 39% 366 401 384 375 369 1,526Rio Tinto total alumina production 710 779 725 748 778 2,963 ALUMINIUMRefined production ('000 tonnes)Anglesey 51% 18.2 18.2 18.3 18.7 18.5 73.4Bell Bay 100% 42.8 43.5 43.9 43.6 43.2 173.8Boyne Island 59% 79.5 81.6 82.4 82.7 80.4 326.2Tiwai Point 79% 67.8 70.0 72.0 70.6 65.0 280.3Rio Tinto total aluminium production 208.3 213.3 216.6 215.6 207.1 853.7 BAUXITEProduction ('000 tonnes)Weipa 100% 3,443 3,674 3,781 4,576 3,843 15,474 BORATESBorates ('000 tonnes B2O3 content)Rio Tinto total borate production 100% 122 146 141 151 129 560 COAL - HARD COKINGRio Tinto Coal Australia (a)('000 tonnes) Hail Creek Coal 82% 1,136 1,223 1,208 1,270 617 4,838 Kestrel Coal 80% 766 729 547 315 508 2,357Rio Tinto total hard coking coal 1,902 1,952 1,755 1,585 1,126 7,195production COAL - OTHER *Rio Tinto Coal Australia (a) ('000tonnes) Bengalla 30% 433 386 366 622 330 1,806 Blair Athol Coal 71% 1,892 1,789 1,994 1,876 1,730 7,551 Hunter Valley Operations 76% 2,525 2,292 2,259 2,293 2,124 9,369 Kestrel Coal 80% 160 227 143 89 125 619 Mount Thorley Operations 61% 597 648 664 491 763 2,400 Tarong Coal 100% 1,784 1,334 1,804 1,549 1,803 6,470 Warkworth 42% 602 622 766 657 744 2,647Total Australian other coal 7,993 7,298 7,996 7,576 7,618 30,863Kennecott Energy ('000 tonnes) Antelope 100% 6,687 6,788 7,287 6,413 7,501 27,174 Colowyo (b) 1,315 1,315 1,219 1,477 1,468 5,325 Cordero Rojo 100% 9,170 8,736 7,687 8,642 8,675 34,234 Decker 50% 540 872 841 890 776 3,144 Jacobs Ranch 100% 9,032 8,188 8,014 8,590 8,513 33,823 Spring Creek 100% 2,497 3,018 3,243 3,122 2,549 11,881Total US coal 29,240 28,916 28,290 29,135 29,481 115,580Rio Tinto total other coal 37,233 36,214 36,286 36,710 37,099 146,443production COPPERMine production ('000 tonnes)Bingham Canyon 100% 62.1 56.7 50.2 51.6 61.6 220.6Escondida 30% 84.9 94.1 101.7 100.4 100.4 381.1Grasberg - Joint Venture (c) 40% 25.7 22.0 23.6 38.2 11.9 109.6Northparkes 80% 8.6 9.5 11.8 13.3 15.5 43.2Palabora (d) 47% 6.9 7.7 8.2 7.2 7.2 30.0Rio Tinto total mine production 188.2 190.1 195.4 210.7 196.5 784.4Refined production ('000 tonnes)Escondida 30% 11.4 11.2 10.2 10.4 8.0 43.2Kennecott Utah Copper 100% 57.2 41.5 68.1 65.1 70.9 232.0Palabora (d) 47% 9.2 9.3 10.8 9.9 6.7 39.3Rio Tinto total refined production 77.8 62.0 89.2 85.5 85.6 314.5 DIAMONDSProduction ('000 carats)Argyle 100% 8,633 9,393 5,995 6,455 5,214 30,476Diavik 60% 1,049 1,509 1,306 1,098 1,073 4,963Murowa 78% 51 52 48 44 38 195Rio Tinto total diamond production 9,733 10,954 7,349 7,598 6,324 35,635 Mine production figures for metals refer to the total quantity of metal producedin concentrates or dore bullion irrespective of whether these products are thenrefined on-site. • Coal - other includes thermal coal and semi-soft coking coal. See footnotes on page 10. RIO TINTO SHARE OF PRODUCTION (continued) FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005GOLDMine production ('000 ounces)Barneys Canyon 100% 4 4 4 4 4 16Bingham Canyon 100% 115 95 92 99 129 401Cortez/Pipeline 40% 88 110 89 74 35 361Escondida 30% 16 13 13 13 12 55Grasberg - Joint Venture (c) 40% 159 140 122 248 9 670Greens Creek 70% 15 14 11 12 11 51Kelian (e) 90% 31 8 - - - 38Lihir (f) 0% 15 19 28 - - 61Northparkes 80% 10 11 12 13 16 46Rawhide 51% 6 5 3 4 4 18Others - 2 2 2 2 2 7Rio Tinto total mine production 460 420 376 469 221 1,726Refined production ('000 ounces)Kennecott Utah Copper 100% 90 76 92 110 118 369 IRON ORE & IRONProduction ('000 tonnes)Channar 60% 1,524 1,311 1,371 980 1,211 5,186Corumba 100% 377 372 371 290 440 1,410Eastern Range (g) 1,295 1,831 1,897 1,536 1,756 6,559Hamersley 100% 15,836 19,704 18,915 19,931 17,404 74,387Iron Ore Company of Canada (h) 59% 2,014 2,459 2,292 2,424 1,871 9,188Robe River 53% 6,572 6,489 7,341 7,362 5,986 27,764Rio Tinto total mine production 27,618 32,166 32,187 32,522 28,668 124,494Pig iron production ('000 tonnes)HIsmelt(R) (i) 60% - - - 5 2 - LEADMine production ('000 tonnes)Greens Creek 70% 3.4 3.3 2.5 2.7 3.0 11.9 MOLYBDENUMMine production ('000 tonnes)Bingham Canyon 100% 3.9 3.3 3.9 4.6 4.4 15.6 SALTProduction ('000 tonnes)Dampier Salt 65% 1,383 1,392 1,121 1,610 1,209 5,507 SILVERMine production ('000 ounces)Bingham Canyon 100% 1,140 1,050 884 884 1,036 3,958Escondida 30% 434 439 505 593 457 1,970Grasberg - Joint Venture (c) 40% 118 249 280 718 19 1,364Greens Creek 70% 2,120 1,797 1,313 1,562 1,451 6,791Others - 209 193 216 226 216 843Rio Tinto total mine production 4,020 3,726 3,197 3,982 3,180 14,926Refined production ('000 ounces)Kennecott Utah Copper 100% 755 1,138 830 814 1,398 3,538 TALCProduction ('000 tonnes)Luzenac Group 100% 325 365 328 346 381 1,364 TITANIUM DIOXIDE FEEDSTOCKProduction ('000 tonnes)Rio Tinto Iron & Titanium 100% 321 328 327 335 344 1,312 URANIUMProduction (tonnes U3O8)Energy Resources of Australia 68% 1,025 936 1,035 1,040 938 4,037Rossing 69% 592 497 712 745 569 2,545Rio Tinto total uranium production 1,617 1,434 1,747 1,785 1,508 6,582 ZINCMine production ('000 tonnes)Greens Creek 70% 10.0 10.4 8.1 8.7 8.6 37.2 Mine production figures for metals refer to the total quantity of metal producedin concentrates or dore bullion irrespective of whether these products are thenrefined on-site, except for the data for iron ore which represent production ofsaleable quantities of ore plus pellets. See footnotes on page 10. RIO TINTO SHARE OF PRODUCTION (continued) Production data notes (a) Rio Tinto Coal Australia manages all the operations below; including themines which were previously reported separately under the Coal & Allied name. (b) In view of Kennecott Energy's responsibilities under a managementagreement for the operation of the Colowyo mine, all of Colowyo's output isincluded in Rio Tinto's share of production. (c) Through a joint venture agreement with Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold(FCX), Rio Tinto is entitled to 40% of additional material mined as aconsequence of expansions and developments of the Grasberg facilities since1998. (d) During the second half of 2005, the conversion of debentures intoordinary shares resulted in a dilution of Rio Tinto's shareholding in Palaborafrom 49.2% to 47.2%. The conversions continued during the first quarter of 2006and the Rio Tinto shareholding at the end of the quarter was 46.5%. (e) Kelian ceased processing ore on 7 February 2005 and the final gold pourwas on 27 May 2005. (f) On 30 November 2005, Rio Tinto sold its interest in Lihir Gold; it hadagreed in September 2005 to relinquish the management agreement for Lihir. Theproduction data are shown up to 30 September 2005, from which date the Rio Tintointerest in Lihir was held as an investment rather than being equity accounted. (g) Rio Tinto's share of production includes 100% of the production from theEastern Range mine. Under the terms of the joint venture agreement, HamersleyIron manages the operation and is obliged to purchase all mine production fromthe joint venture. (h) Rio Tinto sold its 19% interest in the Labrador Iron Ore Royalty IncomeFund on 23 March 2005. The Fund has a shareholding in Iron Ore Company of Canadabut this was not included in the calculation of tonnage attributable to RioTinto. (i) HIsmelt(R) commenced production during 2005. Where Rio Tinto's beneficial interest in an operation has changed, as indicatedabove, the share of production has been calculated using the weighted averageinterest over the relevant periods. Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above isat 31 March 2006. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005ALUMINIUMRio Tinto AluminiumWeipa mine 100.0%Queensland, AustraliaBeneficiated bauxite production ('000 tonnes) 3,443 3,674 3,781 4,576 3,843 15,474Metal grade bauxite shipments ('000 tonnes) 3,466 3,472 3,979 4,034 3,788 14,952Calcined bauxite production ('000 tonnes) 32 42 34 22 47 130Comalco Alumina Refinery 100.0%Queensland, AustraliaAlumina production ('000 tonnes) 196 228 191 220 257 835Eurallumina refinery 56.2%Sardinia, ItalyAlumina production ('000 tonnes) 264 267 267 273 271 1,070Queensland Alumina refinery 38.6%Queensland, AustraliaAlumina production ('000 tonnes) 948 1,038 995 972 956 3,953Anglesey Aluminium smelter 51.0%United KingdomPrimary aluminium production ('000 tonnes) 35.6 35.8 35.8 36.7 36.2 143.9Bell Bay smelter 100.0%Tasmania, AustraliaPrimary aluminium production ('000 tonnes) 42.8 43.5 43.9 43.6 43.2 173.8Boyne Island smelter 59.4%Queensland, AustraliaPrimary aluminium production ('000 tonnes) 132.5 136.1 137.9 138.4 134.7 544.9Tiwai Point smelter 79.4%New ZealandPrimary aluminium production ('000 tonnes) 85.4 87.7 90.2 88.1 81.6 351.4Rio Tinto Aluminium shareShare of primary aluminium sales ('000 196.7 215.3 221.6 225.0 200.2 858.6tonnes) BORATESRio Tinto Borax 100.0%California, US and ArgentinaBorates ('000 tonnes) (a) 122 146 141 151 129 560(a) Production is expressed as B2O3 content. COALKennecott Energy and Coal CompanyAntelope mine 100.0%Wyoming, USThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 6,687 6,788 7,287 6,413 7,501 27,174Colowyo mine (a)Colorado, USThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 1,315 1,315 1,219 1,477 1,468 5,325Cordero Rojo mine 100.0%Wyoming, USThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 9,170 8,736 7,687 8,642 8,675 34,234Decker mine 50.0%Montana, USThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 1,080 1,745 1,683 1,781 1,552 6,288Jacobs Ranch mine 100.0%Wyoming, USThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 9,032 8,188 8,014 8,590 8,513 33,823Spring Creek mine 100.0%Montana, USThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 2,497 3,018 3,243 3,122 2,549 11,881 Total coal production ('000 tonnes) 29,780 29,789 29,131 30,025 30,257 118,724Total coal sales ('000 tonnes) 29,780 29,789 29,131 30,025 30,257 118,724 (a) In view of Kennecott Energy's responsibilities under a managementagreement for the operation of the Colowyo mine, all of Colowyo's output isincluded in Rio Tinto's share of production. Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The datarepresent full production and sales on a 100% basis unless otherwise stated. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005COAL (continued)Rio Tinto Coal Australia (a)Bengalla mine 30.3%New South Wales, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 1,430 1,274 1,208 2,053 1,088 5,965Blair Athol Coal mine 71.2%Queensland, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 2,655 2,512 2,799 2,634 2,429 10,600Hail Creek Coal mine 82.0%Queensland, AustraliaHard coking coal production ('000 tonnes) 1,386 1,492 1,473 1,549 753 5,900Hunter Valley Operations 75.7%New South Wales, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 2,765 2,497 2,429 2,651 2,386 10,341Semi-soft coking coal production ('000 570 530 555 378 419 2,033tonnes)Kestrel Coal mine 80.0%Queensland, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 200 283 179 112 156 774Hard coking coal production ('000 tonnes) 957 912 683 393 635 2,946Mount Thorley Operations 60.6%New South Wales, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 718 612 836 529 969 2,695Semi-soft coking coal production ('000 268 458 261 281 291 1,267tonnes)Tarong Coal mine 100.0%Queensland, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 1,784 1,334 1,804 1,549 1,803 6,470Warkworth mine 42.1%New South Wales, AustraliaThermal coal production ('000 tonnes) 1,380 1,335 1,736 1,495 1,759 5,946Semi-soft coking coal production ('000 50 145 85 67 11 347tonnes) Total hard coking coal production ('000 2,343 2,403 2,157 1,943 1,388 8,846tonnes)Total hard coking coal sales ('000 tonnes) 1,973 2,312 1,557 1,684 1,220 7,526Total other coal production ('000 tonnes) (b) 11,821 10,979 11,891 11,746 11,309 46,438Total other coal sales ('000 tonnes) (c) (d) 12,409 10,813 12,424 11,816 11,860 47,463 Total coal production ('000 tonnes) 14,164 13,382 14,048 13,689 12,698 55,283Total coal sales ('000 tonnes) 14,382 13,126 13,981 13,500 13,080 54,989Rio Tinto Coal Australia shareShare of hard coking coal sales ('000 tonnes) 1,608 1,881 1,268 1,374 994 6,131Share of other coal sales ('000 tonnes) (c) 8,306 7,241 8,399 7,719 7,986 31,666(d) (a) Rio Tinto Coal Australia manages all the operations below; the mines inNew South Wales were previously reported separately under the Coal & Alliedname. (b) Other coal production includes thermal coal and semi-soft coking coal. (c) Other coal sales includes thermal coal, semi-soft coking coal andsemi-hard coking coal (a mixture of thermal coal and coking coal). (d) Sales relate only to coal mined by the operations and exclude tradedcoal. Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The datarepresent full production and sales on a 100% basis unless otherwise stated. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005COPPER & GOLDEscondida 30.0%ChileSulphide ore treated ('000 tonnes) 19,913 21,725 22,255 22,161 21,843 86,054Average copper grade (%) 1.41 1.51 1.59 1.58 1.62 1.53Mill production (metals in concentrates): Contained copper ('000 tonnes) 241.1 277.8 304.4 304.0 302.8 1,127.3 Contained gold ('000 ounces) 55 44 42 43 40 183 Contained silver ('000 ounces) 1,446 1,462 1,682 1,975 1,522 6,565Oxide ore treated ('000 tonnes) 4,236 4,218 4,214 4,261 3,984 16,930Average copper grade (%) 0.99 0.85 0.82 0.72 0.80 0.84Contained copper in leachate/mined material ('000 42 36 35 31 32 143tonnes)Refined production: Oxide plant production ('000 tonnes) 37.9 37.2 34.1 34.8 26.8 143.9Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (a)Grasberg mine 0.0% (40.0% of the expansion)Papua, IndonesiaOre treated ('000 tonnes) 17,946 19,271 19,899 21,791 19,512 78,907Average mill head grades: Copper (%) 1.14 0.98 1.06 1.31 0.72 1.13 Gold (g/t) 1.62 1.43 1.16 2.33 0.92 1.65 Silver (g/t) 5.26 4.54 4.36 5.36 4.21 4.88Production of metals in concentrates: Copper in concentrates ('000 tonnes) 183.5 164.1 185.5 260.8 115.9 793.9 Gold in concentrates ('000 ounces) 788 750 609 1,400 485 3,546 Silver in concentrates ('000 ounces) 1,805 1,576 1,662 2,489 903 7,531Sales of payable metals in concentrates: (b) Copper in concentrates ('000 tonnes) 173.0 164.4 179.9 249.0 114.0 766.3 Gold in concentrates ('000 ounces) 743 759 594 1,342 486 3,438 Silver in concentrates ('000 ounces) 1,358 1,257 1,284 1,897 711 5,795 (a) Through a joint venture agreement with Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold(FCX), Rio Tinto is entitled to 40% of additional material mined as aconsequence of expansions and developments of the Grasberg facilities since1998. (b) Net of smelter deductions. Kelian Equatorial Mining (a) 90.0%East Kalimantan, IndonesiaOre treated ('000 tonnes) 826 - - - - 826Average ore grades: Gold (g/t) 1.68 - - - - 1.68 Silver (g/t) 2.29 - - - - 2.29Production: Gold ('000 ounces) 34 8 - - - 43 Silver ('000 ounces) 27 4 - - - 32Sales: Gold ('000 ounces) 90 10 - - 42 100 Silver ('000 ounces) - 304 - - - 304 (a) Kelian ceased processing ore on 7 February 2005 and the final gold pourwas on 27 May 2005. Mine closure programmes including reclamation,rehabilitation and sustainable monitoring continue. Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The datarepresent full production and sales on a 100% basis unless otherwise stated. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005COPPER & GOLD (continued)Kennecott Minerals CompanyCortez/Pipeline mine 40.0%Nevada, USOre treated Milled ('000 tonnes) 823 868 759 798 756 3,247 Leached ('000 tonnes) 8,021 5,962 5,725 3,352 3,812 23,059 Sold for roasting ('000 tonnes) 42 72 90 73 35 277Average ore grade: gold Milled (g/t) 4.78 5.62 4.81 4.71 2.33 5.00 Leached (g/t) 0.67 0.60 0.49 0.49 0.39 0.58 Sold for roasting (g/t) 7.26 6.52 6.73 8.89 6.50 7.33Gold produced ('000 ounces) 220 274 223 186 87 904Greens Creek mine 70.3%Alaska, USOre treated ('000 tonnes) 168 178 154 151 158 651Average ore grades: Gold (g/t) 5.46 5.22 4.71 5.02 4.54 5.12 Silver (g/t) 735 608 527 615 533 623 Zinc (%) 10.8 10.5 9.6 10.4 10.0 10.3 Lead (%) 4.3 4.1 3.6 3.9 4.0 4.0Metals produced in concentrates: Gold ('000 ounces) 21 20 15 17 16 73 Silver ('000 ounces) 3,016 2,557 1,869 2,222 2,065 9,664 Zinc ('000 tonnes) 14.2 14.7 11.6 12.4 12.2 52.9 Lead ('000 tonnes) 4.8 4.7 3.5 3.8 4.3 16.9Rawhide mine (a) 51.0%Nevada, USMetals produced in dore: Gold ('000 ounces) 11 9 7 8 7 35 Silver ('000 ounces) 103 88 63 67 63 320 (a) Mining operations were completed in October 2002 and processing ofstockpiled ores was completed in May 2003. Residual gold and silver productioncontinues from the leach pads. Kennecott Utah CopperBarneys Canyon mine (a) 100.0%Utah, USGold produced ('000 ounces) 4 4 4 4 4 16 (a) Mining operations ceased in the first quarter of 2002. Gold continues tobe recovered from leach pads. Bingham Canyon mine 100.0%Utah, USOre treated ('000 tonnes) 11,664 11,757 11,875 11,369 11,702 46,664Average ore grade: Copper (%) 0.60 0.53 0.47 0.51 0.62 0.53 Gold (g/t) 0.42 0.35 0.34 0.38 0.52 0.37 Silver (g/t) 3.75 3.36 2.81 3.02 3.73 3.23 Molybdenum (%) 0.063 0.057 0.052 0.058 0.060 0.058Copper concentrates produced ('000 tonnes) 243 231 193 213 242 881Average concentrate grade (% Cu) 25.5 24.4 26.0 24.1 25.3 25.0Production of metals in copper concentrates: Copper ('000 tonnes) (b) 62.1 56.7 50.2 51.6 61.6 220.6 Gold ('000 ounces) 115 95 92 99 129 401 Silver ('000 ounces) 1,140 1,050 884 884 1,036 3,958Molybdenum concentrates produced ('000 tonnes): 7.1 6.3 7.6 8.6 8.2 29.5 Molybdenum in concentrates ('000 tonnes) 3.9 3.3 3.9 4.6 4.4 15.6Kennecott smelter & refinery 100.0%Copper concentrates smelted ('000 tonnes) 217 224 300 300 270 1,042Copper anodes produced ('000 tonnes) (c) 50.4 43.1 68.6 67.3 66.4 229.3Production of refined metal: Copper ('000 tonnes) 57.2 41.5 68.1 65.1 70.9 232.0 Gold ('000 ounces) (d) 90 76 92 110 118 369 Silver ('000 ounces) (d) 755 1,138 830 814 1,398 3,538 (a) Includes a small amount of copper in precipitates. (b) New metal excluding recycled material. (c) Includes gold and silver in intermediate products. Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The datarepresent full production and sales on a 100% basis unless otherwise stated. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005COPPER & GOLD (continued)Lihir Gold (a) 0.0%Papua New GuineaOre treated ('000 tonnes) 803 1,051 917 - - 2,771Average ore grade: gold (g/t) 4 4 7 - - 5Gold produced ('000 ounces) (b) 101 130 193 - - 424 (a) On 30 November 2005, Rio Tinto sold its interest in Lihir Gold; it hadagreed in September 2005 to relinquish the management agreement for Lihir. Theproduction data are shown up to 30 September 2005, from which date the Rio Tintointerest in Lihir was held as an investment rather than being equity accounted. (b) Gold production represents quantity of gold poured. Northparkes Joint Venture 80.0%New South Wales, AustraliaOre treated ('000 tonnes) 1,300 1,360 1,372 1,421 1,425 5,453Average ore grades: Copper (%) 1.06 0.97 1.17 1.27 1.45 1.12 Gold (g/t) 0.46 0.43 0.47 0.49 0.56 0.46Copper concentrates produced ('000 tonnes) 30.2 33.7 39.5 43.9 48.4 147.2Contained copper in concentrates: Saleable production ('000 tonnes) 10.7 11.9 14.7 16.7 19.4 54.0 Sales ('000 tonnes) (a) 9.4 9.8 11.0 13.1 14.3 43.4Contained gold in concentrates: Saleable production ('000 ounces) 12.5 13.4 15.0 16.1 19.6 57.0 Sales ('000 ounces) (a) 15.5 9.0 10.6 14.7 13.3 49.9 (a) Rio Tinto's 80% share of material from the Joint Venture. Palabora (a) 46.5%Palabora mineSouth AfricaOre treated ('000 tonnes) 2,156 2,459 2,572 2,349 2,646 9,536Average ore grade: copper (%) 0.72 0.71 0.71 0.72 0.71 0.72Copper concentrates produced ('000 tonnes) 48.0 48.4 52.9 47.8 51.5 197.1Average concentrate grade: copper (%) 29.3 32.2 31.3 31.2 29.9 31.0Copper in concentrates ('000 tonnes) 14.1 15.6 16.6 14.9 15.4 61.2Palabora smelter/refineryNew concentrate smelted on site ('000 tonnes) 75.2 71.7 75.2 82.2 42.0 304.4New copper anodes produced ('000 tonnes) 20.0 19.4 22.7 22.4 10.0 84.5Refined new copper produced ('000 tonnes) 18.7 19.0 22.1 20.6 14.3 80.3By-products:Magnetite concentrate ('000 tonnes) 201 189 267 231 251 888Refined nickel sulphate (tonnes) 34 57 37 57 35 186Vermiculite plantVermiculite produced ('000 tonnes) 48 54 53 55 48 210 (a) During the second half of 2005, the conversion of debentures intoordinary shares resulted in a dilution of Rio Tinto's shareholding in Palaborafrom 49.2% to 47.2%. The conversions continued during the first quarter of 2006and the Rio Tinto shareholding at the end of the quarter was 46.5%. DIAMONDSArgyle Diamonds 100.0%Western AustraliaAK1 ore processed ('000 tonnes) 2,342 2,358 2,111 2,158 1,956 8,969AK1 diamonds produced ('000 carats) 8,633 9,393 5,995 6,455 5,214 30,476Diavik Diamonds 60.0%Northwest Territories, CanadaOre processed ('000 tonnes) 495 612 619 497 492 2,222Diamonds recovered ('000 carats) 1,749 2,515 2,177 1,831 1,788 8,272Murowa Diamonds 77.8%ZimbabweOre processed ('000 tonnes) 29 28 49 73 66 178Diamonds recovered ('000 carats) 66 67 61 57 48 251 Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The data represent full production and sales on a100% basis unless otherwise stated. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005IRON ORE & IRONHamersley IronWestern AustraliaSaleable iron ore production ('000 tonnes): Paraburdoo, Mount Tom Price, Marandoo, Yandicoogina and Brockman 100.0% 15,836 19,704 18,915 19,931 17,404 74,387 Channar 60.0% 2,540 2,185 2,284 1,634 2,018 8,644 Eastern Range (a) 1,295 1,831 1,897 1,536 1,756 6,559Total production ('000 tonnes) 19,671 23,720 23,097 23,101 21,178 89,590Total sales ('000 tonnes) (b) 20,024 21,885 22,387 25,793 20,982 90,090 (a) Rio Tinto owns 54% of the Eastern Range mine. Under the terms of thejoint venture agreement, Hamersley Iron manages the operation and is obliged topurchase all mine production from the joint venture and therefore all of theproduction is included in Rio Tinto's share of production. (b) Sales represent iron ore exported from Western Australian ports. HIsmelt(R) (a) 60.0%Western AustraliaPig iron production ('000 tonnes) - - - 9 4 -(a) HIsmelt(R) commenced production during 2005.Iron Ore Company of CanadaNewfoundland & Labrador and Quebec in CanadaCarol Lake operations 58.7%Saleable iron ore production: Concentrates ('000 tonnes) 307 745 581 683 341 2,316 Pellets ('000 tonnes) 3,122 3,442 3,322 3,445 2,846 13,331Sales: Concentrate ('000 tonnes) 204 612 552 755 316 2,123 Pellets ('000 tonnes) 2,344 3,326 2,951 4,230 2,150 12,851Rio Tinto BrasilCorumba mine 100.0%Mato Grosso do Sul, BrazilSaleable iron ore production ('000 tonnes) 377 372 371 290 440 1,410(a)Sales ('000 tonnes) 392 243 391 276 418 1,303(a) Production includes by-product fines.Robe River Iron AssociatesPannawonica mine 53.0%Western AustraliaSaleable iron ore production ('000 tonnes) 7,333 7,574 8,076 7,998 6,481 30,981Sales ('000 tonnes) 7,939 7,118 7,802 8,203 6,756 31,062West Angelas mine 53.0%Western AustraliaSaleable iron ore production ('000 tonnes) 5,067 4,670 5,775 5,891 4,813 21,403Sales ('000 tonnes) 4,932 4,469 5,902 6,187 4,745 21,491 Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The datarepresent full production and sales on a 100% basis unless otherwise stated. RIO TINTO OPERATIONAL DATA FULL Rio Tinto 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q 1Q YEAR interest 2005 2005 2005 2005 2006 2005SALTDampier Salt 64.9%Western AustraliaSalt production ('000 tonnes) 2,130 2,144 1,726 2,480 1,862 8,480 TALCThe Luzenac Group 100.0%Australia, Europe, and North AmericaTalc production ('000 tonnes) 325 365 328 346 381 1,364 TITANIUM DIOXIDE FEEDSTOCKRio Tinto Iron & Titanium 100.0%Canada and South Africa(Rio Tinto share)Titanium dioxide feedstock production ('000 tonnes) 321 328 327 335 344 1,312 URANIUMEnergy Resources of Australia LtdRanger mine 68.4%Northern Territory, AustraliaProduction (tonnes U3O8) 1,499 1,369 1,514 1,521 1,372 5,903Rossing Uranium Ltd 68.6%NamibiaProduction (tonnes U3O8) 863 725 1,038 1,086 830 3,711 Rio Tinto percentage interest shown above is at 31 March 2006. The datarepresent full production and sales on a 100% basis unless otherwise stated. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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