Pool, Getty Images
Industryweek 9124 071615riotintoironoreforecast
Industryweek 9124 071615riotintoironoreforecast
Industryweek 9124 071615riotintoironoreforecast
Industryweek 9124 071615riotintoironoreforecast
Industryweek 9124 071615riotintoironoreforecast

Mining Giant Rio Tinto Cuts Iron Ore Target

July 16, 2015
Poor weather, including a pair of cyclones in western Australia, reduced capacity for the company, which downgraded its annual forecast by about 10 million tonnes.

SYDNEY — Rio Tinto cut its full-year guidance for iron ore shipments on Thursday after poor weather hit its operations in the first half of the year.

The mining giant said it now expects to ship around 340 million tonnes during the 2015 calendar year after unseasonal weather, including two cyclones, in Western Australia reduced capacity at its Pilbara operations by 7 million tonnes . It had previously forecast annual shipments of around 350 million tonnes .

Despite the downgrade in its annual target, Rio produced 79.7 million tonnes of iron ore in the June quarter, up 12% from the previous three months. Shipments of 81.4 million tonnes were up 12% over the same period, but not as much as anticipated.

Australia is one of the world’s bigger suppliers of iron ore, which is key to making steel, and China is its largest customer.

Miners have faced a see-sawing week with the price of the commodity falling 10% last Thursday before spiking 10% the next day. It is now tracking around the $50 a tonne on mark.

The iron ore price had already been declining in recent months, exacerbated by the world’s four biggest iron ore exporters — Rio, BHP Billiton, Vale and Fortescue — lifting their production levels to maintain their share of exports.

Elsewhere, Rio said hard coking coal production was up 5% to 2.1 million tonnes in the quarter from the previous three months, while semi-soft coking and thermal coal production was down 10% to 5.1 million tonnes . 

Bauxite production rose 2% to almost 10.7 million tonnes , while copper production dropped 7% to 134,000 tonnes due to lower production from its Kennecott mine in Utah.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2015

Popular Sponsored Recommendations

Empowering the Modern Workforce: The Power of Connected Worker Technologies

March 1, 2024
Explore real-world strategies to boost worker safety, collaboration, training, and productivity in manufacturing. Emphasizing Industry 4.0, we'll discuss digitalization and automation...

3 Best Practices to Create a Product-Centric Competitive Advantage with PRO.FILE PLM

Jan. 25, 2024
Gain insight on best practices and strategies you need to accelerate engineering change management and reduce time to market. Register now for your opportunity to accelerate your...

Transformative Capabilities for XaaS Models in Manufacturing

Feb. 14, 2024
The manufacturing sector is undergoing a pivotal shift toward "servitization," or enhancing product offerings with services and embracing a subscription model. This transition...

Shifting Your Business from Products to Service-Based Business Models: Generating Predictable Revenues

Oct. 27, 2023
Executive summary on a recent IndustryWeek-hosted webinar sponsored by SAP

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of IndustryWeek, create an account today!