Business
Rio Tinto advances gallium metal R&D project in partnership with the Government of Canada
TORONTO, March 02, 2026--Rio Tinto is moving forward on a research and development project to extract primary gallium from its alumina refining process in Quebec, with a conditionally approved contribution from Natural Resources Canada under the Global Partnerships Initiative (GPI).
About this update from Rio Tinto Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"TORONTO, March 02, 2026--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rio Tinto is moving forward on a research and development project to extract primary gallium from its alumina refining process in Quebec, with a conditionally approved contribution from Natural Resources Canada under the Global Partnerships Initiative (GPI).","length":300,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"After successfully extracting first gallium together with its partner Indium Corporation in May 2025, Rio Tinto will start construction of a pilot plant at its Complexe Jonquière in Saguenay, Canada to validate the technology in an industrial environment. The new plant is expected to be operational in 2027.","length":308,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Plans are underway to build a demonstration plant with a capacity of up to 4 tonnes of gallium per year on the same site.","length":121,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"The Government of Canada has conditionally approved a non-repayable contribution of up to C$18.95 million in the project, in addition to the C$7 million committed by the Government of Québec in December 2024.","length":208,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Primary gallium is available in limited quantities globally with current world production standing at more than 700 metric tonnes per year, all from outside North America. The transition to a commercial-scale plant could see Rio Tinto’s production reach 40 tonnes annually, representing approximately 5% of global production.","length":325,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Rio Tinto Aluminium and Lithium Chief Executive Jérôme Pécresse said: "Our Vaudreuil alumina refinery in Québec, Canada is a strategic asset for our integrated aluminium operations. Extracting gallium from our existing refining process would create additional value from this asset and strengthen the North American supply chain for gallium, a critical mineral used in everything from high-performance radars, to smartphones, electric cars and laptops."","length":463,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Canada's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, The Honorable Tim Hodgson, said: "Research and development are essential to building the responsible and resilient critical mineral supply chains that power clean energy, advanced manufacturing and defence readiness. By supporting innovative project...