Rio Tinto recently released its production results for the 2016 third quarter. The company’s strong performance in bauxite was sustained into the third quarter, with quarterly and nine month production records driven by both Weipa and Gove. Year-to-date bauxite production was 10% higher than for the same period in 2015. Weipa (up 5%) benefited from increased plant throughput, while Gove (up 25%) continued to deliver system improvements resulting in a 10 million ton per year run-rate in the third quarter. This production performance enabled the group to ship 22 million tons to third parties in the first nine months of 2016, 10% above the same period of 2015.

The Amrun Project is advancing to schedule in both engineering and construction. Site establishment is progressing to plan, with the construction accommodation village operational and the permanent village under construction. The main access road is on track for completion in December 2016, and the river terminals are expected to be in operation by early 2017.

Alumina production for the first nine months was up 5% compared with the same period of 2015, primarily driven by ramp-up progress and operational improvements at the Yarwun refinery, which was up 6% on the third quarter production of 2015. Rio Tinto’s expected share of production has been increased to 47 million tons for bauxite (previously 45 million tons), and remains otherwise unchanged at 7.8 million tons of alumina and 3.6 million tons of aluminum.

Borates production in the first nine months of 2016 was 4% higher than in the same period of 2015 driven primarily by higher market demand. Titanium dioxide slag production was 14% lower in the first nine months of 2016, although volumes in the quarter were 10% higher than the third quarter of 2015. In 2016, Rio Tinto’s share of production is expected to be 1 million tons of titanium dioxide slag and 0.5 million tons of boric oxide equivalent.

“We have delivered strong quarterly production, underpinned by improving operational performance across our Tier 1 portfolio,” said J-S Jacques, CEO. “Output from our iron ore and bauxite assets reflects the drive for productivity and operational excellence. With a continued focus on value, we will seek further productivity improvements across the business. Our rigorous attention to cash generation, coupled with a disciplined allocation of capital, remains our key focus in delivering shareholder value.”

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