Rio Tinto to acquire Chilean exploration assets and enter joint venture with Codelco

LONDON--()--Rio Tinto has agreed to purchase PanAmerican Silver’s stake in Agua de la Falda S.A. (“Agua de la Falda”), a company with exploration tenements in Chile’s prospective Atacama region, and to enter a joint venture with Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile (“Codelco”) to explore and potentially develop Agua de la Falda's assets.

Under the agreement, Rio Tinto will acquire PanAmerican Silver’s 57.74% operating stake in Agua de la Falda for $45 million and the grant of new smelter returns royalties. Rio Tinto will also acquire 100% of nearby concessions known as the Meridian Property for $550,000 and the grant of new smelter returns royalties.

Codelco, which is the world’s largest copper producer and is owned by the Chilean State, holds the remaining 42.26% of Agua de la Falda.

Rio Tinto Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm said “Copper is critical for the global energy transition, which is at the heart of Rio Tinto’s strategy, and Chile is one of the most important sources of world supply as demand for copper in renewables and electrification grows.

Partnerships are essential to find better ways to provide materials the world needs, and we are pleased we can bring our global exploration capability to a joint venture that will be able to access Codelco’s strong local presence and industry expertise.

Although this is an early-stage exploration project, we are very excited to be actively exploring in Chile in partnership with Codelco.”

Codelco Chairman Maximo Pacheco said “Codelco welcomes Rio Tinto in Agua de la Falda. This is a remarkable opportunity to put two leading mining companies to work together, leveraging the combined experiences, strengths, and capabilities of each organisation. By joining forces, we can enhance our exploration and development efforts for a highly promising asset.

Public-private partnerships have proven to be successful for Codelco and Chile for many years, and we are convinced that this is a compelling alternative to move a project forward and to complement the significant exploration and project portfolio being developed exclusively by Codelco.”

The joint venture builds on an underground mining collaboration agreement between Rio Tinto and Codelco signed on 12 October 2022, aimed at encouraging innovations and technology to improve safety, productivity and environmental, social and governance (ESG) outcomes.

Agua de la Falda has previously been explored for precious metals with minimal modern exploration for copper. Analysis by Rio Tinto Exploration indicates it is prospective for new copper discoveries, which will now be the focus of the joint venture.

Contacts

Please direct all enquiries to media.enquiries@riotinto.com

Media Relations,
United Kingdom
Matthew Klar
M +44 7796 630 637
David Outhwaite
M +44 7787 597 493

Media Relations,
Australia
Matt Chambers
M +61 433 525 739
Jesse Riseborough
M +61 436 653 412
Alyesha Anderson
M +61 434 868 118

Media Relations,
Americas
Simon Letendre
M +1 514 796 4973
Malika Cherry
M +1 418 592 7293

Investor Relations,
United Kingdom
Menno Sanderse
M +44 7825 195 178
David Ovington
M +44 7920 010 978
Laura Brooks
M +44 7826 942 797

Investor Relations,
Australia
Tom Gallop
M +61 439 353 948
Amar Jambaa
M +61 472 865 948

Rio Tinto plc
6 St James’s Square
London SW1Y 4AD
United Kingdom
T +44 20 7781 2000
Registered in England
No. 719885

Rio Tinto Limited
Level 43, 120 Collins Street
Melbourne 3000
Australia
T +61 3 9283 3333
Registered in Australia
ABN 96 004 458 404

riotinto.com

Category: General

Contacts

Please direct all enquiries to media.enquiries@riotinto.com

Media Relations,
United Kingdom
Matthew Klar
M +44 7796 630 637
David Outhwaite
M +44 7787 597 493

Media Relations,
Australia
Matt Chambers
M +61 433 525 739
Jesse Riseborough
M +61 436 653 412
Alyesha Anderson
M +61 434 868 118

Media Relations,
Americas
Simon Letendre
M +1 514 796 4973
Malika Cherry
M +1 418 592 7293

Investor Relations,
United Kingdom
Menno Sanderse
M +44 7825 195 178
David Ovington
M +44 7920 010 978
Laura Brooks
M +44 7826 942 797

Investor Relations,
Australia
Tom Gallop
M +61 439 353 948
Amar Jambaa
M +61 472 865 948

Rio Tinto plc
6 St James’s Square
London SW1Y 4AD
United Kingdom
T +44 20 7781 2000
Registered in England
No. 719885

Rio Tinto Limited
Level 43, 120 Collins Street
Melbourne 3000
Australia
T +61 3 9283 3333
Registered in Australia
ABN 96 004 458 404

riotinto.com

Category: General