POSCO secures Australian iron ore
South Korean steel giant POSCO announced today that it agreed to a 10-year iron ore contract with Australian mining company Rio Tinto. In line with the deal, POSCO will buy 128 million tons of iron ore from Rio Tinto's Hamersley Iron, in which Rio Tinto owns a 100 per cent stake, and Robe River Iron Associates, in which Rio Tinto owns a 53 per cent stake. The new contract, which is an extension of the existing iron ore contract with the Australian iron ore giant, will provide POSCO with a stable source of iron ore for its steelmaking operations over the next decade. As previously reported by SteelOrbis, in November 2004, POSCO signed a contract with Brazil's Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) to purchase 103 million tons of iron ore for 10 years. Also, in December 2004, POSCO signed a memorandum of understanding with Australia's BHP Billiton to extend the contract to purchase 125 million tons of iron ore for an additional 10 years.