Finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs
Our business
We operate in 35 countries where our 57,000 employees are working to find better ways to provide the materials the world needs
Our purpose in action
Continuous improvement and innovation are part of our DNA
Innovation
The need for innovation is greater than ever
We supply the metals and minerals used to help the world grow and decarbonise
Iron Ore
The primary raw material used to make steel, which is strong, long-lasting and cost-efficient
Lithium
The lightest of all metals, it is a key element needed for low-carbon technologies
Copper
Tough but malleable, corrosion-resistant and recyclable, and an excellent conductor of heat and transmitter of electricity
Bringing to market materials critical to urbanisation and the transition to a low-carbon economy
Oyu Tolgoi
One of the most modern, safe and sustainable operations in the world
Rincon Project
A long-life, low-cost and low-carbon lithium source
Simandou Project
The world’s largest untapped high-grade iron ore deposit
Providing materials the world needs in a responsible way
Climate Change
We’re targeting net zero emissions by 2050
Nature solutions
Our nature-based solutions projects complement the work we're doing to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 emissions
Decarbonisation progress update
We have a clear plan on decarbonisation - find out more about our progress in 2024
We aim to deliver superior returns to our shareholders while safeguarding the environment and meeting our obligations to wider society
Investor seminars
Our Investor seminar will be held in London on 4 December, and our Decarbonisation update on 5 December
Get the latest news, stories and updates
Things you can't live without
Our podcast discussing what needs to happen to create a sustainable future for the everyday items we have come to rely on
The 'f' word of innovation
How unlocking innovation requires a change of mindset
Reducing titanium oxide's carbon footprint
Our BlueSmelting technology could drastically reduce carbon emissions during ore processing
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If you want to drive real change, we have just the place to do it
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Supporting new parents of any gender with equal access to parental leave
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From tropical cyclones and extreme heat in Australia to wildfires across Canada, the impacts of extreme weather on our operations are real.
And as our climate continues to change, extreme weather events like these will happen more often and more intensely. We know we need to plan for and manage climate risks accordingly so our operations, communities, partners and people can continue to operate safely, productively and profitably, now and in the future.
We've made progress during 2023 to manage physical climate risk, and will continue this important work in 2024 and beyond.
Our 4 key pillars for physical climate risk assessment and resilience are:
We use the latest generation weather and climate data to model our climate risks and quantify our exposure:
Climate change projections are available for all sites, including non-managed assets. Downscaled climate change projections are available for more than 60 climate change variables and future emissions scenarios from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Coupled Model Intercomparison Project 5 (CMIP5) and 6 (CMIP6).
We use a targeted and systematic process to assess the physical and financial risks to our people, the communities that host us, our operations, the environments we operate in, and our supply chains.
Through a robust process, we identify climate risks and opportunities across applicable time horizons and emissions scenarios, evaluate their potential consequences and likelihood, and prioritise them by materiality for effective risk management and appropriate resource allocation. This process is integrated within the ÌÇÐÄvlogÈë¿Úrisk management information system.
Although we plan for many possibilities, climate change projections can be uncertain, and we don’t know which scenario might eventuate. But regardless of how climate change affects the world, we know that we need to plan for options that will help us adapt to physical climate risk.
Each site, operating context, and location is unique. So we explore multiple resilience options, weighing up how sustainable, manageable, and flexible they are, and how we’ll work with partners and communities to fund and roll them out, before approving them for funding.
We know accountability is critical, so we actively monitor risks across our operations using the latest climate change data and emerging technologies. And as things change, we proactively adapt our processes to make sure our sites are managed responsibly and safely for our people, surrounding communities, and the environments we work in, now and in the future.
Depending on the geographic context, community, asset and operation, the existing infrastructure, design and/or operational procedures, climate risk can impact us in different ways.
Flood
Water stress/drought
Heat extremes
Increased workforce health and safety risk and reduced productivity
Wildfire
Tropical cyclones
Coastal extreme/inundation
Across our entire business, we’ve identified 8 major physical climate risks, which take into account our people, the communities that host us, our operations, the environments that we work in, and our supply chain. This helps us coordinate our approach so we can continue to operate safely, profitably, and productively in a rapidly changing climate.
Our physical climate risk classification is based on modelled property damage loss estimates across our assets and considers present-day and 3 future time horizons (2030, 2040 and 2050). We consider 8 climate hazards, including flooding (riverine and surface water), coastal inundation, including sea level rise, extreme heat, cyclonic wind, extreme wind, forest fire, and freeze-thaw.  
Our modelling considers 2 future emissions scenarios – Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) – from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), including: 
We’ve categorised risk based on Annualised Damage (AD), which represents the expected average annual damage to an asset attributable to climate-related hazards relative to a fixed value (e.g. $1 million). As such, an AD of 0.5% would mean that for every $1 million of exposure, $5,000 could be damaged, on average, in any given year.  
Risk categorisation is based on the AD values, with thresholds set at <0.2% for low risk, 0.2-1% for medium risk, and >1% for high risk.   
Read more on the methodology in our .
To date, we have:
The Pilbara region in Western Australia is a land of extremes. From scorching temperatures and arid landscapes to tropical cyclones and flash floods, weather events in the Pilbara can be extremely disruptive to our operations, infrastructure, workforce and communities, supply chains and customers.
If an extreme weather event happens, tried and tested business resilience management plans help us make fast decisions about how to respond, recover and keep our operations running safely. We currently plan for up to 8 weather interruption days every year, but every year is different. And due to climate change, the nature of extreme weather events is changing, creating more year-to-year variability. So to adapt, we need to understand our risk exposure.
In 2022, we assessed our Pilbara operations’ physical resilience to climate change. The greatest risks we face come from tropical cyclones, including extreme wind and rainfall, flooding and storm surge. And while we expect fewer cyclones in the future, their intensity is likely to increase. Rising sea levels and more intense rainfall are also likely to trigger more flooding, which could affect our assets, communities and the environment.
Another significant risk is extreme heat, which is a major concern for employee health and wellbeing, and the reliability of our electricity grids and power sources. Our Gudai-Darri operation in the Pilbara currently experiences around 40 days per year where maximum air temperatures exceed 40°C. But by 2050, this may double to around 80 days per year (assuming an ) with even hotter peak temperatures.
We’ve already started closing any gaps identified in the 2022 review and are now working on further analysis to make sure we’re prepared for any future scenarios.
At QIT Madagascar Minerals (QMM), near Fort Dauphin in the Anosy region of south-eastern Madagascar, we produce ilmenite – a major source of titanium dioxide, mostly used as a white pigment in products such as paints and paper.
Water is a vital, shared resource that’s integral to the lives and livelihoods of QMM’s surrounding communities, and to the region’s long-term environmental stability. So we take our responsibility to manage water at our QMM operation very seriously – but Madagascar’s erratic rainfall patterns make water management at QMM complex.
So in 2023, we used artificial intelligence (AI) to create a tool that can generate rainfall outlooks up to 6 months in advance. We can track a series of climate influences that drive rainfall variability across Southern Madagascar and predict expected monthly rainfall totals and how they compare with historical rainfall at the site.
We use data to help make decisions under uncertainty. Our new AI tool, combined with short-term forecasts and other seasonal data, gives us a much more robust set of tools to plan for and manage our operations during Madagascar’s temperamental wet season.
Every year is different, but for hydrologists and water managers, climate change is making managing water more complex and unpredictable. That's the challenge faced by our water resources team in Canada's Saguenay-Lac Saint-Jean region. We manage a 73 000km2 watershed, including 3 reservoirs and 6 hydropower plants, which supply electricity to the region’s aluminium smelters.
For years, we’ve relied on traditional methods and historical observations to produce our water forecasts. But with the climate changing, we know relying solely on the past isn’t enough. So, we developed a new method for water forecasting, which helps us account for this uncertainty.
By analysing many different weather and water variables, we learned that winters are shorter with less snow, spring snowmelt is starting earlier, and there’s less water available in summer. In a region where snow is crucial to water supply, we know we need to rethink how we manage our water.
So now, we pay attention to climate change signals as part of our day-to-day activities. We use management tools designed to help us make fast, informed decisions and plan for the long term. But adapting isn’t just about tools – it’s about mindset. We’re now thinking about water management in a different way and are more prepared to face the challenges of climate change.
Storage sites for mining waste (tailings storage facilities) need to stay safe, now and in the future. So when we design them, the best way to keep them stable is to design a landform that sustains itself with minimal maintenance. Climate data is a key consideration when designing important features like drains, spillways, and slopes for tailings storage facilities so that they can withstand whatever the climate throws at them.
That’s why we developed the Climate Change Resilience Assessment Methodology (CCRA). We use the CCRA to understand how climate change might impact our tailings storage facilities. Using a risk-based approach, supported by climate change projections, we develop site-specific solutions.  
The CCRA involves:
So far, the CCRA has been a success story for several of our closed sites, including Holden in the US, Segoussac in France and Gove in Australia. We’ll continue to roll out this approach for other tailings storage facilities and update it as new climate data becomes available. 
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With the exception of the use of cookies, ÌÇÐÄvlogÈë¿Úgenerally does not seek to collect personal data through this website. However if you choose to provide personal data to ÌÇÐÄvlogÈë¿Úthrough this website (for example, by sending us an email), we will process that personal data to answer your query and if relevant, to manage our business relationship with you or your company. We won't process that personal data for other purposes except where required to meet our legal obligations or otherwise as authorised by law and notified to you.
If you choose to subscribe to our media releases or other communications, you can unsubscribe at any time (by following the instructions in the email or by contacting us).
With your consent, our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site. A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer's hard drive.
As some data privacy laws regulate IP addresses and other information collected through the use of cookies as personal data, Rio Tinto’s processing of such personal data needs to comply with its Data Privacy Standard (see Part 1 of our Privacy Policy), and also applicable data privacy laws.
With the exception of the use of cookies (explained below), ÌÇÐÄvlogÈë¿Úgenerally does not seek to collect personal data through this website. However if you choose to provide personal data to ÌÇÐÄvlogÈë¿Úthrough this website (for example, by sending us an email), we will process that personal data to answer your query and if relevant, to manage our business relationship with you or your company. We won't process that personal data for other purposes except where required to meet our legal obligations or otherwise as authorised by law and notified to you.
Part 1 of this Privacy Policy contains the ÌÇÐÄvlogÈë¿ÚData Privacy Standard, which provides an overview of Rio Tinto’s approach to personal data processing. There is additional information in the appendices to the Data Privacy Standard, including information about disclosures, trans-border data transfers, the exercise of data subject rights and how to make complaints or obtain further information relating to Rio Tinto’s processing of your personal data.
If you choose to subscribe to our media releases or other communications, you can unsubscribe at any time (by following the instructions in the email or by contacting us at digital.comms@riotinto.com).
With your consent, our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site.
A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer's hard drive.
As some data privacy laws regulate IP addresses and other information collected through the use of cookies as personal data, Rio Tinto’s processing of such personal data needs to comply with its Data Privacy Standard (see Part 1 of this Privacy Policy), and also applicable data privacy laws.
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