Rio Tinto boss hopes to forge stronger ties with state-owned firms in China
GLOBAL miner Rio Tinto hopes to see further cooperation with China’s state-owned firms after its tie-up with Chinese aluminium giant Chalco, Rio Tinto’s boss yesterday.
Tom Albanese, chief executive, also said the company was willing to help China seek mineral resources at home and abroad.
“The partnership with Chalco opens the potential for further cooperation with China’s
state-owned enterprises,” Albanese said in a speech at a mining industry event in Shanghai.
Albanese has moved to repair ties with key market China by forging wider business relationships and appointing new executives to the country after a trial earlier this year convicted four Rio Tinto employees of taking bribes and stealing commercial secrets, handing out sentences ranging between seven and 14 years in prison.
Last month, Rio Tinto signed an agreement with Chalco on a deal to invest $1.35bn in the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. China is the largest world’s largest consumer of aluminium.