Rio Tinto’s aluminium production improves by 5% Y-o-Y in Q1 2024 as Kitimat smelter restores full capacity

On April 17, Rio Tinto, a British-Australian mining group, announced its 2024 first quarter production result, reporting improvements in both aluminium and bauxite businesses while remaining focused on energy-transition and sustainability.

Rio Tinto posted that its aluminium output in Q1 2024 ended March 31 stood at 826,000 tonnes, up by 5 per cent year-on-year but down by 2 per cent quarter-on-quarter. The annual rise could be attributed to the recovery of Kitimat smelter to a full capacity.

In early October 2023, Kitimat aluminium smelter regained its full capacity of production after a 17-month long interruption caused by a strike in 2021. The smelter attained its maximum production capacity of 432,000 tonnes of aluminium per year, marking the first instance of such achievement since 2018.

The company’s bauxite production was recorded at 13.4 million tonnes in Q1 2024, marking an annual increase of 11 per cent, owing to continued improvement in operational stability at Weipa and Gove. But on a quarter-on-quarter basis, the output edged the same percentage of downfall.

Rio Tinto also reported its injury frequency rate of 0.36 for the first quarter of 2024, in line with the previous quarter, and a small increase from the first quarter of 2023 (0.34).

Rio Tinto Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm commented: “We have been deeply affected by the loss of four Diavik colleagues and two airline crew members in a plane crash in January. This tragedy has strengthened our resolve to never be complacent about safety.”

He added, “We delivered stable operating results in the first quarter, including improvements at our bauxite and aluminium businesses, as we navigated seasonal challenges across our global operations. Our full year guidance is unchanged across all our products. We remained focused on growth in energy-transition materials, with the ramp-up at Oyu Tolgoi underground, the first full quarter of recycled aluminium production from Matalco and further progress at Simandou, our high grade iron ore project in Guinea.”

“Action to decarbonise our operations continues, with power purchase agreements signed marking a significant step towards a competitive renewable energy solution for our Gladstone operations - the single largest lever towards our 2030 emissions goal. We also joined with BHP and BlueScope to investigate the development of Australia’s first electric smelting furnace pilot plant, progressing our work on steel decarbonisation. We continue to pursue our long-term strategy, and have a clear pathway to deliver operational excellence, while investing in profitable growth and delivering attractive shareholder returns,” said Stausholm.