Data centres will help drive Rio Tinto’s profits in coming years, according to chief executive Simon Trott, but the electricity they require poses a new threat to its ailing Australian aluminium smelters.

Mr Trott delivered Rio’s biggest interim dividend since 2022 on Wednesday, with the company declaring a $US2.11 ($3.04) half-year return on the back of a 47 per cent surge in first-half net profit.

While iron ore is still Rio’s biggest profit centre, the improvement was underpinned by a surging copper price, with Mr Trott pointing to the explosion in artificial intelligence and data centre demand to support Rio’s results in coming years – though he stopped short of calling out a new commodity super cycle.

“Our portfolio gives us leading exposure to the biggest dreams of our time: electrification, AI and digital, and traditional demand. Up to 60 per cent of the value of raw materials in electric vehicles comes from our commodities,” he said.

“On AI and digital, it’s up to 70 per cent of the value of raw materials that goes into a data centre, and the scale of investment here is extraordinary. Hyperscaler capex is forecast to reach nearly $US1 trillion next year.”

But the extraordinary demand for electricity generated by data centres is also putting pressure on Australia’s electricity networks, and Mr Trott told The Australian that was becoming a factor for Rio’s Pacific Aluminium division, already struggling to compete due to high electricity prices.

“It’s true in every jurisdiction around the world. I think each community is grappling with how it progresses data centres, the approvals required, some of the co-commitments required, and that’s a debate that’s happening around the world. But the demand’s coming through,” he said.

“We obviously engage on our own assets and the footings that we need for those assets.”

Strong commodity prices pushed PacAl to a strong financial result for the year, with the division booking $US733m in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, up from $US99m for the first half of 2025.

But Rio’s results also show the impact of Donald Trump’s tariff hit on aluminium imports, with the company paying $US773m in tariffs in the half – mostly from its Canadian operations.

Rio declared a $US6.7bn after-tax profit on Wednesday on the back of 28 per cent lift in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to $US14.8bn.

The company said it also improved free cash flow in the half by 75 per cent to $US3.8bn, with chief executive Simon Trott declaring the result a “step change” in financial performance.

“Our continued investment in growth drove a 3 per cent increase in copper equivalent production and further strengthened our portfolio diversification, with copper, aluminium and lithium contributing more than 50 per cent of underlying EBITDA,” he said in a statement.

Mr Trott said the company remained on track to free up to $US5bn by the end of the year through the sale of assets and part-sales of its infrastructure, saying productivity improvements had also helped drive production growth.

That figure includes the sale of Rio and the West Australian government’s $1.1bn under-construction desalination plant in the Pilbara, which this week Rio agreed to sell to a consortium led by Yindjibarndi traditional owners.

While earnings from Rio’s iron ore division still made up the biggest share of the company’s profit, with the division delivering EBITDA of $US6.8bn, the gap to its copper earnings is narrowing quickly.

Rio’s copper operations booked EBITDA of $US5.7bn for the half, up 84 per cent from the first half of 2025 on the back of strong commodity prices. Its aluminium and lithium division booked EBITDA of $US3.3bn.

Iron ore was hit by the fuel price volatility caused by the war in the Middle East, with the division taking a US80c-a-tonne rise in costs in the first half due to soaring diesel prices.

Mr Trott said on Wednesday that fuel price volatility was still a cause for concern for Rio, as was the potential for supply interruptions – not just for diesel but for lubricants needed in the company’s heavy machinery.

“It’s a real focus area for us to ensure supplies,” he said. “But we looked back towards Covid and learning from that experience as well it was often the secondary or tertiary impacts that had impact.”

Rio finished June with net debt of $US14.1bn. The company said it would pay out $US3.4bn ($4.87bn) in dividends.

Rio shares closed Tuesday at $159.53.

Read related topics:Rio TintoNick EvansNick EvansMargin Call Columnist and Resource Writer

Nick Evans has covered the Australian resources sector since the early days of the mining boom in the late 2000s. He joined The Australian’s business team from The West Australian newspaper’s Canberra bureau, where he covered the defence industry, foreign affairs and national security for two years. Prior to that Nick was The West’s chief mining reporter through the height of the boom and the slowdown that followed.