Rio Tinto has a essential function to play in enabling the worldwide vitality transition by supplying important minerals for the renewable applied sciences wanted, the mining big’s shareholders have been informed.
Addressing the group’s annual common assembly in Perth on Thursday, board chair Dominic Barton stated the way forward for the corporate was “looking bright” because it marked 150 years of operation.
Having emerged from a difficult interval, Rio Tinto had laid the foundations to develop into “the global mining company of choice”, he stated.
The vitality transition and the drive to web zero, coupled with a renewed concentrate on safety of provide, supplied additional alternatives for Rio Tinto, Mr Barton stated.
He stated if the world was to satisfy the Paris local weather accord objectives it might want 700 billion tonnes of copper over the following 20 years, whereas by 2050 windpower capability must improve eightfold.
“To put that into perspective, one wind turbine of three megawatts requires 300 tonnes of steel, five tonnes of copper, three tonnes of aluminium and two tonnes of rare earths.”
Mr Barton stated electrical autos and battery storage would elevate lithium demand greater than 40 instances by 2040 whereas 20 instances extra cobalt and nickel could be wanted.
“So we have a critical role to play in enabling this energy transition, supplying essential minerals … all of which are vital for the transition to a low-carbon economy.”
Mr Barton stated Rio Tinto delivered robust monetary leads to 2022 with the momentum persevering with into 2023.
It declared whole dividends of $US8 billion ($A12 billion) to shareholders final yr, “our second-largest ordinary dividend in our 150-year history” and paid $US10.8 billion in taxes and royalties.
“Building trust with our key stakeholders and strengthening our social licence was also a key focus of 2022,” Mr Barton stated.
“While it’s for others to judge our progress on those points, I’m proud of some recent achievements, particularly agreements reached with Indigenous peoples.”
Mr Barton stated the business was at an “inflection point” with balanced decision-making required to satisfy the wants of the vitality transition and continued world progress.
“How do we fulfil our role in the energy transition in a way that is socially and environmentally responsible and yet sufficiently commercial to attract the investment required?”
Mr Barton stated he believed Rio Tinto was as much as the problem to cut back its personal emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 and to satisfy a net-zero goal by 2050.
In response to a query from the ground he stated the corporate supported the proposed voice to parliament however was not telling its workers which approach to vote within the referendum later this yr.
Chief government Jakob Stausholm stated the corporate had underlying earnings of $US13.3 billion final yr and a return on capital employed of 25 per cent.
Profit after tax attributable to Rio Tinto shareholders was $US12.4 billion and stability sheets remained robust with web debt of $US4.2 billion.
Mr Stausholm stated 2022 was the fourth consecutive fatality-free yr for the corporate but it surely continued to strengthen its security tradition.
Rio Tinto was additionally altering the best way it partnered with communities, particularly with Indigenous peoples, he stated.
“Moving to a model of co-management of country and improving our agreements will deliver more enduring socio-economic heritage and environmental outcomes and in turn greater certainty for mine development.”
Mr Stausholm stated a spotlight was creating with native Aboriginal folks the Juukan Gorge Legacy Foundation as a part of the treatment to the destruction by Rio Tinto of rock shelters within the gorge in May 2020.
“But we know it will be a long journey to rebuild trust.”
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
