Rio Tinto Group [RIO:LN], the world’s largest iron ore miner based in Australia, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China Baowu [600019:CH], the top steelmaker in China, to collaborate on green steel projects in both countries, as reported by Bloomberg on June 12. The two companies will build and demonstrate a pilot-scale electric smelter at one of Baowu’s steel mills in China. This smelter will utilize Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) technology to produce low-carbon steel from low and medium-grade ores. Moreover, Rio Tinto and Baowu will explore various decarbonization projects. This includes optimizing palletization technology to produce high-grade iron ore pellets from Australian ores, further developing Baowu’s technology for reducing emissions from blast furnaces, and studying opportunities for producing low-carbon iron in Western Australia.

This collaboration strengthens the partnership between Rio and Baowu. Last September, the two companies established a joint venture (JV) to develop the Western Range iron ore project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with a total investment of USD2bn. In the meantime, Baowu also entered a sales agreement with Rio to purchase up to 126.5 million tons of iron ore over approximately 13 years. The partnership is significant for Rio Tinto as it faces challenges in supplying ore suitable for next-generation smelters that rely on hydrogen rather than coal. These challenges could potentially undermine Rio’s leading position in the global iron industry experiencing decarbonization. Baowu’s commitment to low-carbon steel aligns with China’s national goals of reaching peak carbon emissions in the steel industry by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.

Sources:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-06-12/rio-tinto-china-baowu-to-jointly-explore-green-steel-projects#xj4y7vzkg

https://www.riotinto.com/en/news/releases/2023/china-baowu-and-rio-tinto-extend-climate-partnership-to-decarbonise-the-steel-value-chain

https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3223787/rio-tinto-china-baowu-jointly-explore-green-steel-projects-cut-carbon-emissions

https://english.news.cn/20220915/b8dc436852dc4a41b9154f9f442815cf/c.html

https://www.sohu.com/a/685015045_120165743