Rio Tinto: Simandou Project to Start Iron Ore Production Next Year

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Rio Tinto released its production figures for the third quarter. Consistent with forecasts, the company recorded a considerable increase in iron ore shipments during the quarter.

According to Rio Tinto, the company is still on pace to start producing iron ore from its Simandou project in Guinea early next year. Over the following thirty months, Simandou's Simfer mine is anticipated to increase to a capacity of about 60 million tonnes (Mt) annually. Additionally, by year's end, the company hopes to begin producing lithium from its Rincon project in Argentina.

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84.5 Mt of iron ore were shipped by the company from its Pilbara operations during the third quarter of the year. According to the news release, this was mostly consistent with the consensus estimate of 84.74 Mt. Compared to 83.5 Mt the previous year, the Pilbara iron ore production increased to 84.1 Mt in the three months that ended on September 30, 2024. On the other hand, its Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) operations saw a notable 11% decrease in production during the quarter.

According to Rio Tinto, the Chinese steel manufacturing industry's sharp decline in demand for the raw material meant that iron ore prices remained low for the most of Q3.