Rio Tinto hits 8 billion-tonne milestone for Pilbara iron ore shipments

Rio Tinto has reached the landmark of 8 billion tonnes of iron ore shipped from its Pilbara operations to global markets, six decades after its first export. The milestone cargo departed Cape Lambert port on May 19 aboard the vessel Juno Horizon, bound for Nippon Steel Corporation.

The company's inaugural Pilbara iron ore shipment sailed for Japan in August 1966.

Rio Tinto is also progressing studies on the Rhodes Ridge deposit, which could yield around 100 million tonnes of high-grade iron ore annually, helping to underpin a mid-term production capacity of 345–360 million tonnes per year.