At its first AGM since the collapse of its proposed $300 billion Glencore merger in February, Rio Tinto reaffirmed its cost-cutting focus, pointing to opportunities in energy transition metals such as copper and lithium.
Speaking at the miner’s annual general meeting (AGM) this week, new CEO Simon Trott reiterated plans announced at the company’s capital markets day in December and signalled further commitments ahead.
Trott, who succeeded Jakob Stausholm last July, said the US$650 million ($895 million) in savings flagged late last year had been fully delivered “as promised, with substantially more on the way”.
While he did not detail the sources, the savings are understood to include job cuts. Trott did not confirm how many roles are at risk or where they would fall but said the changes would span all operations.
He did, however, say that the savings include a target of US$5 billion to US$10 billion in cash to be released through asset sales.
Held in Perth and simultaneously in London via video link, the meeting was the first since Rio Tinto’s proposed mega-merger with Swiss company Glencore collapsed in February.
The now-abandoned deal was the largest in the current copper M&A wave, drawing widespread attention as it would have enabled Rio to expand its copper portfolio and capitalise on surging demand for the metal, fuelled by the energy transition and the AI boom.
If completed, it also would have created the world’s largest mining company.
Asked about the failed deal, Trott cited an inability to add value, while pointing to “good progress” on the capital markets day plan as the better path.
The meeting also follows the publication of full-year results from Rio and rival BHP earlier this year, which highlighted a stark contrast in their copper strategies, with BHP’s early push into the metal making it its largest earnings driver for the first time.
Despite Rio lifting copper-equivalent production by 8 per cent in 2025, its full-year profit after tax still fell 14 per cent to US$9.97 billion ($14.1 billion), its weakest result in five years. The results highlighted challenges for the miner’s main export, iron ore, where prices fell 6 per cent over the year amid China’s steel production cuts.
But Trott was keen to highlight the steel-making material, where Rio is Australia’s largest exporter, while arguing it is also “well positioned” to benefit from rising global demand for copper, lithium and aluminium.
“We operate the world’s leading iron ore business – combining unparalleled scale in the Pilbara, an integrated system in Canada, and high-grade growth from Simandou.
“In copper, we are a leading low-cost producer at scale. In aluminium we are the largest integrated producer in the Western World. While in lithium, we are building a leading position globally, as a tier-one producer, with a strong pipeline of opportunities.”
Discussing expansion plans, Trott also pointed to the near $20 billion program for new Pilbara iron ore mines, plants and equipment by 2028, as existing mines age.
“Beyond all this, we have a strong pipeline of opportunities to extend growth well into the 2030s, particularly in copper. Including Resolution in Arizona, our Nuton leaching ventures and projects like Nuevo Cobre in Chile,” he added.
Also, during the meeting, Trott suggested that the miner plans to decarbonise the business, arguing the move “makes good commercial sense”.
Rio chair Dominic Barton acknowledged that the miner remains heavily reliant on natural gas for its operations in the medium term but said rising fossil fuel prices make decarbonisation an imperative.
“The Iran war is just putting a magnifying glass on or around that. And so, electrification and fuel switching, underpinned by renewable electricity, is something that we want to drive towards,” Barton said.
The CEO’s address also opened with a reference to three fatalities at the miner’s sites since its last meeting, as he vowed to improve safety.
“Our colleagues’ deaths show we are not where we need to be on safety, which is the foundation of our business. As a leadership team, we are focused on understanding what happened, learning the lessons and being clear about what must change,” Trott said.