Rio Tinto Plc · LSE:RIO
Rio Tinto — Robe River Iron Associates — Investor Presentation (May 2001)
32 slides from Rio Tinto's investor presentation, May 2001
Slide 1: Robe River Iron Associates Financial Community Presentation
Robe River Iron Associates Financial Community Presentation May 2001
Slide 2: Robe is the world's largest exporter of low iron content iron ore
Robe is the world’s largest exporter of low iron content iron ore. This is achieved through: • reliability of supply • consistency in quality • competitive value in use • the support of the Japanese participants/customers
Slide 3: Ownership
Ownership Rio Mitsui Iron Ore Nippon Steel Sumitomo Metal Tinto Ltd Development P/L Australia P/L Australia P/L 53% 33% 10.5% 3.5% Robe River Iron Associates (Unincorporated Joint Venture)
Slide 4: Record year for Robe
Record year for Robe • 2000/01* record performance • Record tonnes mined 31.5 Mt • Record tonnes railed 31.4 Mt • Record tonnes shipped 32.5 Mt * Robe River Iron Associates financial year is based on the Japanese Iron Ore Year 1 April - 31 March
Slide 5: Improving safety performance
Improving safety performance Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) 7 6 5 LTIFR 4 3 2 1 0 1999 2000 2001 YTD 2001 Target Calender Year 1 January - 31 December
Slide 6: Increased labour productivity
Increased labour productivity Tonnes ore product / North West Employees 60 60 55 50 46 45 41 42 42 Tonnes (000s) 40 35 37 33 30 30 25 22 20 18 10 10 10 0 85/86 86/87 87/88 88/89 89/90 90/91 91/92 92/93 93/94 94/95 95/96 96/97 97/98 98/99 99/00 00/01 Financial Year 1 April - 31 March
Slide 7: Robe pisolite reserves - up to 25 years mine life
Robe pisolite reserves - up to 25 years mine life Reserves Strip Life of Fe% Mt Ratio mine Mesa J & Extension 300 0.61 10 57.15 Mes A & Warramboo 220 0.33 7 57.25 Bungaroo Creek 200 0.9 7 60.1
Slide 8: Robe's comparative quality
Robe’s comparative quality Iron Alumina 70 3.0 68 2.5 66 Mean Al2O3Content Mean Fe Content 64 2.0 62 1.5 60 58 1.0 56 0.5 54 52 0.0 Robe Fines BHP Yandi HI Carajas Robe Fines BHP Yandi HI Carajas Silica Robe supplies a lower grade product 6.0 - containing the lowest Iron, and highest 5.0 alumina and
Slide 9: Consistency of product quality
Consistency of product quality • Robe has a high success rate in achieving a narrow target zone for shipment quality Based on Iron Ore Year Mar 1999 - April 2000 Fe Grade 57.8 This is the red zone 57.6 57.4 57.2 57 56.8 This is the red zone 56.6 Target Acceptable 56.4 Zone Zone
Slide 10: Marketing strategy
Marketing strategy Focus on maximising margin: • Increase lump production • Increase lump premium • Emphasis on “natural” (or freight advantaged) markets • Staged reassessment of European sales • Increased sales growth in China • Develop markets for West Angelas project
Slide 11: Overview of Robe's markets
Overview of Robe’s markets • Strong presence in Japan • largest tonnage market • highest margin market • Europe is a lower margin market • used to spread market risk • high interest in lump • China is the growth market • market with highest growth in iron ore demand
Slide 12: Shipments by product and market
Shipments by product and market (Mt) Robe shipments by product (Mt) Robe shipments by market 35 35 Lum p Europe & USA 30 30 25 25 20 20 15 15 Fines Asia 10 10 5 5 0 - 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 Growth in the last 5 years has been due to increased lump sales, and supp
Slide 13: Key challenges / issues
Key challenges / issues • Safety Improvement • Cape Lambert upgrade (West Angelas) • Mesa J cost improvements • Increasing lump production • Achieving 32mt production • Process Plant 2 operation • West Angelas commissioning
Slide 14: Focus on people and culture
Focus on people and culture • Business awareness • Leadership development • Behavioural observation training • Employee success share scheme • Fitness for work - lifestyle centres
Slide 15: Reducing costs through increased mining efficiencies
Reducing costs through increased mining efficiencies. • Rationalising mining equipment • Reducing haul distance • More efficient waste dump strategy • Reduce excessive excavator travel • Improved drill and blast • Dewatering and tailings dam management • Easing of train loading bottleneck
Slide 16: Process plant increases recovery rate of ore
Process plant increases recovery rate of ore Mesa J Production (millions wet metric tonnes) Rail to Cape Lambert 98/99 30.5 Ore ex face 99/00 31.4 98/99 28.3 00/01 32.0 99/00 28.2 00/01 26.0 Ore ex face Loadout Mixed Direct to loadout Waste Waste Process plant 1 Recovered Mixed waste Ore (60% ) 98/9
Slide 17: Robe River Iron Associates - Cape Lambert
Robe River Iron Associates Cape Lambert May 2001
Slide 18: Cape Lambert operations
Cape Lambert operations Car dumper 5500 tph 67 sec per car Coarse ore stockpile 200,000t capacity Rail 750 tph 4500 tph 3750 tph 20,000 t per train Process 4 to 5 trains per Lump Sinter fines Plant day Excess capacity Product stockpile stockpiles 2Mt capacity 4Mt capacity 6000 tph Lump rescreening p
Slide 19: Plant upgrades to improve fines quality
Plant upgrades to improve fines quality CAPE LAMBERT PLANT FEED FE GRADE (%) -9.5 mm -40 +9.5 mm +40 mm FINES LUMP CRUSHED TO FINES 9.5 mm 40 mm SIZE (mm)
Slide 20: Maximising lump recovery through greater screening efficiency - Line 2
Maximising lump recovery through greater screening efficiency - Line 2 500 450 400 350 Lump (tph) 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Prior to upgrade After upgrade Lump in feed Lump recovered
Slide 21: Secondary crusher upgrade - increased efficiency
Secondary crusher upgrade - increased efficiency New crusher Old crusher Line 2 Line 3 Secondary crusher product Secondary crusher product
Slide 22: Cape Lambert upgrades increased capacity
Cape Lambert upgrades increased capacity Port development • Pre upgrade 40mtpa, 257 ships • Post upgrade 55 - 60mtpa, 340 ships • Increased stockpile capacity Train unloading • Current capacity 32mtpa • Post upgrade capacity 60mtpa
Slide 23: Showing existing parameters
Showing existing parameters 150,000 DWT Ore carrier Dredge depth 19.6 metres Dredge depth 18.5 metres
Slide 24: Showing proposed extension and dredging
Showing proposed extension 150,000 DWT and dredging Ore carrier Dredge depth 19.6 metres Proposed extension Dredge depth 18.5 metres
Slide 25: Product quality control
Product quality control • Monitor mine grades • Lump and fines stockpiled as discrete products • Product is blended onto the stockpiles • Stockpile management system provides grade and tonnage on a given stockpile • Shiploading plan is used to blend from several stockpiles onto the ship • Samples ta
Slide 26: Product quality control impact of West Angelas
Product quality control impact of West Angelas Increased complexity of operations • more stockpiles and product • greater number of machine movements • liaison with laboratory at West Angelas
Slide 27: Opportunities from West Angelas
Opportunities from West Angelas • West Angelas is a source of: • high grade, good quality lump ore • low silica and alumina fine ore • Product consistency is important • West Angelas will assist market development particularly in Korea, Taiwan and China
Slide 28: Focus of marketing for West Angelas
Focus of marketing for West Angelas • Raise customer awareness of West Angelas products • Convert letters of intent into contracts • Continue to introduce the product to potential customers • Facilitate fast growth in customer demand • Desire to purchase will be based on competitive value in use and
Slide 29: West Angelas key dates
West Angelas key dates Currently: • Developing mine • New stockpile areas at the Cape • Port expansion • Recruiting June 2001 - commence waste removal December 2001 - commence processing ore through plant Mar 2002 - rail first tonnes to Cape Lambert June 2002 - first shipment
Slide 30: West Angelas - status at end of April 2001
West Angelas - status at end of April 2001 • Engineering 87.2% complete (Mine & Port) • Construction 27.6% complete (Mine & Port) • 1,075,735 safe man hours on project • $AUD471 million committed to date • Project remains on schedule and within budget • Rail issues, parties in discussion
Slide 31: West Angelas - the future
West Angelas - the future • Recruitment from existing Robe/HI operations and external • Build a strong site culture around safety, flexibility & personal accountability • Ensure schedule reliably delivers product quality • Develop & maintain customer support for Marra Mamba lump & fines • Gear minin
Slide 32: West Angelas shipment tonnes forecast
West Angelas West Angelas sales are expected to commence at around 8mtpa and climb to 20mtpa according to market demand. Total Robe tonneage 50 Shipment tonnes (mMtpa) 40 30 20 10 0 99/00 00/01 01/02 02/03 03/04 04/05 05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09 09/10 Forecast Financial Year 1 April - 31 March
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