Source: Mining Weekly                          Date: 09 June, 2011

Rio Tinto has formed a joint venture (JV) partnership with Chinese major Chinalco to explore mineral deposits in mainland China. The JV, to be called Chinalco Rio Tinto Exploration (CRTX), would initially focus on copper exploration, with coal and potash among the other commodities to be considered in future.

“Access to natural resources is a critical component to many of the world’s leading economies. Drawing on the respective strengths of both companies, this exploration JV could potentially create commodity supplies to benefit the global economy,” said Chinalco president Xiong Weiping. Rio boss Tom Albanese added that the formalization of the exploration JV was an important milestone in the expanding relationship between Rio Tinto and China.

Chinalco will hold a 51% interest in the JV, while Rio would hold 49%. The Chinese major would nominate three directors including the chairperson, and the CFO, deputy general manager and compliance supervisor. Rio Tinto in turn would appoint two directors and the general manager, who will be responsible for day-to-day operations. Rio and Chinalco also have JV exploration ventures in Chile and Guinea, including the multi-billion-dollar Simandou iron-ore project.