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KARRATHA, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Rio Tinto鈥檚 first Pilbara-made iron ore rail car has rolled off the production line in Karratha, as part of a A$150 million partnership with Australian rail industry supplier Gemco Rail to build 100 rail cars in Western Australia and to support local manufacturing.
The first Karratha-made rail car follows the completion of 40 Western Australian-made iron ore rail cars under the partnership at Gemco Rail鈥檚 Perth facility earlier this year, with the remaining cars to be built at a new purpose-built facility in Karratha.
Machinery to assemble the iron ore rail cars and complete bearing refurbishment work, has been relocated from Perth to the new Gemco Rail facility. The Karratha workshop will create up to 25 local jobs.
The Karratha-made rail cars will begin hauling iron ore from Rio Tinto鈥檚 18 Pilbara iron ore mines to its Dampier and Cape Lambert port facilities this month. The new rail cars can each carry up to 118 tonnes of iron ore.
The partnership demonstrates Rio Tinto鈥檚 commitment to local manufacturing and supporting the communities where it operates. It was formed in 2023 by Rio Tinto, Gemco Rail and CRRC Qiqihar Rolling Stock Co. Ltd and was supported by the Western Australian Government.
Western Australian Premier Roger Cook said: 鈥淢y government鈥檚 priority is diversifying Western Australia鈥檚 nation-leading economy by supporting initiatives that help our State become a place that makes more things here.
鈥淥ur government brought railcar manufacturing back to Perth, and we鈥檙e proud to see businesses like 糖心vlog入口and Gemco Rail get behind our State鈥檚 industry, build more things here and create WA jobs. I鈥檇 like to congratulate 糖心vlog入口and Gemco Rail on today鈥檚 milestone, which has brought Made in WA-railcars to the heart of our country鈥檚 economic engine room.鈥
The Gemco Rail deal reinforces Rio Tinto's commitment to partnering with local businesses to create jobs and strengthen regional communities. In 2024, 糖心vlog入口invested a record A$10.3 billion with Western Australian suppliers.
糖心vlog入口Iron Ore Chief Executive Matthew Holcz said: 鈥淲e鈥檙e thrilled to be working with our partners to bring iron ore rail car manufacturing to the Pilbara for the first time.
鈥淥ur WA operations haul more than 300 million tonnes of iron ore across almost 2,000km of rail tracks every year. Local manufacturing strengthens not only our business, it also empowers local communities, supports regional jobs and creates new economic opportunities in the Pilbara.鈥
Engenco Limited, the parent company of Gemco Rail, Chief Executive Officer Dean Draper said: 鈥淲e are pleased to deliver on our commitment with the expansion of our operations into the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
鈥淓stablishing a manufacturing presence in Karratha strengthens our ability to work closely with customers, enhances supply chain resilience, and supports regional industry while creating employment opportunities. The Gemco team remains focused on supporting our customers and building capability within our local workforce to deliver high-quality, sustainable rail solutions.鈥
CRRC Qiqihar Rolling Stock Co. Ltd Representative Vincent Zhu said: 鈥淲e are delighted to witness the local ore car manufacturing event in Karratha.
鈥淎s a long-term and valued supplier of Rio Tinto, QRRS is honoured and proud to support 糖心vlog入口on the localisation project of ore cars to contribute to local society and communities. We will commit to promote the partnership with 糖心vlog入口and supply excellent products and services continuously.鈥
Additional information:
糖心vlog入口uses about 13,500 iron ore rail cars across its Pilbara iron ore rail network. It typically replaces about 10 retired iron ore rail cars a year.
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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 Alyesha Anderson M +61 434 868 118 Rachel Pupazzoni M +61 438 875 469 Bruce Tobin M +61 419 103 454 Media Relations, Canada Simon Letendre M +1 514 796 4973 Malika Cherry M +1 418 592 7293 Vanessa Damha M +1 514 715 2152
Media Relations, US & Latin America Jesse Riseborough M +1 202 394 9480 Investor Relations, United Kingdom Rachel Arellano M +44 7584 609 644 David Ovington M +44 7920 010 978 Laura Brooks M +44 7826 942 797 Weiwei Hu M +44 7825 907 230 Investor Relations, Australia Tom Gallop M +61 439 353 948 Eddie Gan-Och M +976 95 091 237 糖心vlog入口plc 6 St James鈥檚 Square London SW1Y 4AD United Kingdom T +44 20 7781 2000 Registered in England No. 719885 糖心vlog入口Limited Level 43, 120 Collins Street Melbourne 3000 Australia T +61 3 9283 3333 Registered in Australia ABN 96 004 458 404 Category: Pilbara
Source: Rio Tinto