2 minute read
18: Rio Tinto plc
18
Rio Tinto plc
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Rio Tinto will invest in energy from renewable sources, including wind and solar, to decarbonise its Boyne Island and Tomago smelters and its massive iron ore mines in the Pilbara in Western Australia.
Between 2022 and 2030, the company will spend as much as A$7.5bn to cut its Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions in half by the end of the decade.
Plans for the Boyne Island and Tomago smelters entail installation of about 5 GW of renewable power and a back-up solution.
At the Pilbara, Rio Tinto plans to rapidly deploy 1 GW of wind and solar energy as a first step. This would reduce emissions from the iron ore operations of around 1 million tonnes of CO2. The move would also replace gas for plant and infrastructure.
This 1 GW investment would facilitate the initial electrification of trucks, mobile equipment and rail operations; however, Rio Tinto would need to invest in another 2 GW to completely move its Pilbara operations to green energy.
The mammoth task is to cut the one million tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted by its trucking and rail activities.
By 2025, the company is targeting trial runs of zeroemission trucks and locomotives. It has decided not to buy any diesel-powered vehicles after 2030.
Other moves Rio Tinto is considering include:
Crush ore in the mine pit and move it out using conveyors powered by renewable energy
Use more of smaller, autonomous trucks that can utilize current battery technology, and
Electrify iron ore hauling locomotives including the use of regenerative braking
SCOPE 3 EMISSIONS
Approximately 70% of Rio Tinto’s Scope 3 emissions are accounted for by customers converting iron ore into steel.
The steel-making industry is responsible for nearly 8% of global emissions. A switch from blast furnaces to electric arc ones would be environmentally friendlier; however, impurities in the Pilbara iron ore are a hurdle. Rio is evaluating a technology that would produce pig iron by combining biomass with the ore and adding heat from microwaves.
Another option under consideration is to make hot briquetted iron using hydrogen. This would be melted to remove impurities before being fed into a furnace.
