22nd Nov 2005 09:26
Rio Tinto PLC22 November 2005 HIsmelt(R) plant begins ramp up to full production The new commercial scale HIsmelt(R) plant has begun continuous production ofmolten iron from its smelt reduction vessel at Kwinana in Western Australia,marking the start of a new era of cleaner, more efficient iron production. The HIsmelt(R) plant is owned by a joint venture comprising Rio Tinto (60 percent), US steelmaker Nucor Corporation (25 per cent), Japanese trading houseMitsubishi Corporation (10 per cent) and Chinese steelmaker Shougang Corporation(5 per cent). Construction of the plant was completed in April 2005, and hasbeen progressively commissioned since then. The plant will now move into a ramp up phase, and is expected to reach its fullproduction rate of 800,000 tonnes per year over the next three years. The ironproduced will be sold as pig iron once sufficient stocks have built up. Chief executive officer, Rio Tinto Iron Ore, Sam Walsh acknowledged the supportof the Commonwealth and Western Australian governments in the establishment ofthe HIsmelt(R) plant. This included a A$50 million grant by the CommonwealthGovernment for the development of multi user infrastructure with furtherincentives available as commercialisation proceeds. The Western AustralianGovernment provided assistance in securing the land at Kwinana for the plant. Mr Walsh said, "This is a significant milestone in the proving of this worldbeating technology at a commercial scale. The ongoing support of bothgovernments has been appreciated. "I also acknowledge the support of the joint venture participants throughHIsmelt's(R) construction and commissioning phases, and in providing thetechnical expertise to help ensure the success of this exciting new venture," hesaid. Construction of the HIsmelt(R) plant took two years, at a cost of more thanA$400 million dollars, and at its peak around 900 people were engaged on site.Rio Tinto has spent more than A$600 million over the last 20 years in developingthis new technology. HIsmelt(R) is a new technology developed by Rio Tinto to enable the directsmelting of fine iron ore and coal into molten iron. It offers significanttechnical and environmental advantages over existing iron making techniques. The HIsmelt(R) plant at Kwinana has an annual production capacity of 800,000tonnes of iron and uses iron ore from Western Australia and low volatile coalfrom Queensland. These components are injected as fines into the molten bath ofthe smelt reduction vessel where they are directly smelted to molten iron. HIsmelt(R) (Operations) Pty. Limited, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, operates theplant on behalf of the HIsmelt(R) Kwinana Joint Venture, with 70 full timeemployees. For further information, please contact: LONDON AUSTRALIA Media Relations Media Relations Maria Darby Walker Ian Head Office: +44 (0) 20 7753 2305 Office: +61 (0) 3 9283 3620 Mobile: +44 (0) 7725 036 544 Mobile: +61 (0) 408 360 101 Investor Relations Investor Relations Nigel Jones Dave Skinner Office: +44 (0) 20 7753 2401 Office: +61 (0) 3 9283 3628 Mobile: +44 (0) 7917 227 365 Mobile: +61 (0) 408 335 309 David Ovington Susie Creswell Office: +44 (0) 20 7753 2326 Office: +61 (0) 3 9283 3639 Mobile: +44 (0) 7920 010 978 Mobile: +61 (0) 418 933 792 Website: www.riotinto.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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